


Dancing on a Highwire (ENG)

by Izuspp, Mang_o



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: F/F, M/M, Multi, other characters of the manga appears
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-18
Updated: 2019-03-03
Packaged: 2019-03-20 23:59:40
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 9
Words: 39,679
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13728762
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Izuspp/pseuds/Izuspp, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mang_o/pseuds/Mang_o
Summary: Erwin and Levi have one thing in common: Justice. While Erwin performs his duty as the Chief of Sina's police department, Levi in disguise applies justice with his own hand.By using not-so-legal methods, the so-called "super hero" gets rid of the criminals, thus being the creditor of the most wanted criminal title, and creating in Erwin a sick obsession.Manga's adaptation. Translation.





	1. Silverwire

**Author's Note:**

  * A translation of [Dancing on a Highwire](https://archiveofourown.org/works/7491924) by [Izuspp](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Izuspp/pseuds/Izuspp). 



> Hello and thanks for giving this fic an opportunity. This is the second time I try to publish this one, this is a translation of my first EruRi fanfic, the first time I tried to translate it didn't go very well, so I deleted it. Now I'm having help from the awesome Mang-o (profile added as a co-creator) and finally I'm able to publish this fic again. I must say that, although is my first fic, it's my favorite from all the ones I wrote after this one.
> 
> Warning: This fic contains violence, sensitive themes, obscene language, explicit sex scenes and it's an adaptation of the manga, so if you haven't read it, you'll find spoilers. (Well, actually I wrote this one on 2016, most likely there is nothing new)
> 
> I hope you enjoy it!

**Chapter I: Silverwire**

And there he was, flying through the air as if in a dream, in that man's arms which held him very tightly, he felt protected, he felt as if he could achieve anything in the world.

The gusts of wind moved his golden hair wildly about and prevented him from keeping his eyes fully open; adrenaline ran through his body, he felt particularly excited rather than afraid, his heart beating, for the first time in a long time, he felt truly alive.

When he raised his gaze to see that man, his eyes slowly took in the deep, penetrating silver of the other's, managing to ascertain the reason for his nickname.

'Silverwire'

He didn't have the slightest idea that that moment would cause his whole life to change drastically.

* * *

 

Erwin Smith was starting his first day as chief of the investigation department at the Sina City Police Headquarters. He had been transferred from the police department of a minor district, but because the previous chief had recently been killed in a shoot-out between drug-trafficking gangs, the blond was called to fill his post.

Erwin was selected and transferred because of his widely-spread reputation; the man possessed near-superhuman intelligence, which helped him quickly solve any investigation he was assigned. Moreover, he was an astute and calculating man, capable of thinking clearly and objectively while facing the most difficult situations. Despite this, he was a kind and gentle man, always concerned about the greater good.

That promotion was precisely what he had been wishing for quite some time; he yearned to work in a big city where crime was the norm. The purpose of his life was, and always would be, to fight criminals and to bring justice and peace to people. What moved and motivated him was to put every single one of those corrupted individuals behind bars.

Erwin wasn't one for paperwork: he preferred to be on the field, fighting criminals face to face, to him, it was much more productive to attend ops, raids, and remain near the crime scene in general. Being able to cuff a murderer or thief, made a victorious smile play on his face every time.

However, being in his current position, it was his duty to see to paperwork, which kept piling up on his desk after an entire week untouched, that being the amount of time he'd had from arriving at his new job.

"Working hard, eh?"

"Oh, Captain Pixis, how are you?" Erwin's office door remained open so Pixis didn't need to knock in order to announce his presence.

Dot Pixis was the highest-ranking chief of the Sina City Police Department and Erwin's immediate superior. He was an old man, who possessed ample experience after an entire life dedicated to combating crime. The feats made throughout his career were well-known throughout the country's police departments and even internationally. And because he was no longer capable of doing field work, he ran the department with his own knowledge and expertise. The old man was a cheerful and kind person, who always cared about his subordinates, that being the reason why he'd gone to Erwin's office, to make sure he was adjusting to his new position.

"I'm great, Erwin, thank you for asking-" the old man smiled "-I know you dislike sitting in your office checking reports, but I need you to understand that it's part of your job and for you to take it seriously. However, I'd also like for your stay at our department to be as nice as possible, so please, if you need anything don't hesitate to let me know.-" he informed without changing his calm and understanding tone.

"Thank you very much, sir. It will take me some time to organize myself, since I've let work pile up for a week, but I'll be done soon and return to the streets to fulfill my duty, you can count on it-" he stated, entirely confident in his words.

"That's the spirit!" the old policeman laughed vigorously "I'm glad to have young people like you on our side"

"Thank you, sir!"

"Well, I better get going. If you ever need me, I'll be in my office"

"Sir!" Erwin hurriedly called "Actually, there is something you can do for me"

"Really? Glad to help." the old man sat in front to Erwin's desk willing to hear his concerns.

"You see, I've been reviewing some reports and I've also heard of it from some officers. I'd like to know who the so-acclaimed 'Silverwire' is; from what I've gathered, he's one of the most wanted criminals and nobody from our department has been able to arrest him. But, which are his charges, exactly? I haven't been able to find his records into all this chaos." He asked, since the topic had caught his attention due the constant gossip among officers and some reports he had had the chance to read mentioned the existence of said criminal.

"I see!" Pixis leaned back on his seat to begin his story. "I really don't understand how you haven't heard from him before. He's a very particular character, and he's quite popular on this city due to his actions." He crossed his legs and frowned, starting to get excited about his own tale. "See, citizens have dubbed him 'Silverwire' because those who've had the chance to see him up close, talk about his cold gaze and the gray color of his eyes. That's because he's always covered, except his eyes, for obvious reasons, and that is also why we haven't been able to uncover his identity. The guy dedicates himself to catching the city's most dangerous criminals and on countless occasions, he's helped innocent people, that's why citizens consider him as some sort of "superhero" or avenger."

"Wait! All the things you're telling me sound as if they were taken from a comic book. What I still can't understand is why he's wanted by the police and considered as a criminal, despite having helped fight crime -" to Erwin, what the old man was telling him made no sense, he listened carefully to each word and it all seemed surreal, which made his curiosity pique.

Pixis let out a hearty laugh "I haven't told you the whole story. But before I continue, I want you to understand something, Erwin: there's a reason the police department exists and that is to bring justice and peace to citizens. All of our members are highly qualified to fulfill this task and under no circumstance should a civilian take the justice in their own hands. We carry out our duty backed by the law, but when someone decides to act on their own, even if it's for the sake of justice, it's not certain that they would follow legal methods." While the old man spoke, Erwin listened attentively and brought him a glass of water.

"I understand, sir. You are completely right"

"Thank you. I'll continue: our dear friend 'Silverwire' uses some very unconventional methods of justice. He doesn't hesitate to beat, torture or even murder in the cruelest of ways." The blond blinked in surprise, his prominent eyebrows arching and his mouth opening slightly, aghast, as if he did not believe what he was hearing. "I get your reaction. But I'm afraid that's not everything" stated the old man "some people prefer to qualify him as 'The modern Robin Hood' since he steals from the rich, with the difference that he keeps all of it."

"A thief stealing from another thief…" Erwin murmured thoughtfully.

"Exactly, and we assume that he keeps everything because we always check the perps' accounts and they're empty; as if all the money had vanished. How he does it is still a mystery for us" he explained "but in a city as big as ours, with so much money circulating, it's impossible to track it, there are hundreds of companies that handle millions and we can't investigate them without cause. It's because of this, my dear friend, that that man holds the title of most wanted criminal, responsible of dozens of deaths and stealing billions-" the old man finished his explanation, taking his time to drink from his glass and waiting for his subordinate's reaction.

"But, how is it possible for him to do all that? Furthermore, how come you haven't been able to catch him?"

"We don't understand tons of things about that character. For instance, one of the main reasons why he is considered a superhero is because he has a strange high-tech device that allows him to 'fly' or rather move through the air at high speed. It's a mechanism that hooks to any surface and propels him; his nickname is also derived from this. Besides, he seems to possesses great agility and skill to operate the device."

"The more I hear, the harder it becomes to believe it."

"I know!" he laughed energetically once more "I couldn't believe it until I saw him with my own two eyes. However, that's still not all, it appears that he has an incredible strength, we've seen him lifting things several times his own weight and with a single punch or kick that man is capable of breaking bones; despite his height. We can't understand how someone like that can be so strong." The old man explained seriously while playing with his bushy moustache.

"How is all of this possible?" he reiterated the question, still incredulous.

"We have been asking ourselves that same question for a long while, young man. But that's how things are around here, I'm sure that sooner or later you'll have your first encounter with him, it will an experience, I can assure you."

"Excuse my disbelief, but what you're telling me is incredible, sir." There were still many questions on Erwin's mind but, before he could continue asking, a man appeared at the door. He was a very tall, blond guy, with a slight moustache, who had probably ran there, if his breathing was anything to go by.

"What happened, Mike? Why are you so agitated?" Erwin asked.

"Sir! It's Silverwire. He's in the middle of a gang fight that was just called in." When Erwin heard that, his heart started beating faster, a strange thrill seized him, because he would be able to prove with his own eyes what he had just heard.

"We must leave immediately!"

"Well, Erwin, looks like it'll be sooner than I expected. Good luck, and please don't do anything irrational. It's not a big deal if you're unable to catch him." Pixis stated seriously, but still in that kind tone of his.

"Yes, sir!" That said, both blonds bid farewell to their superior and left with the rest of the units for the crime scene.

* * *

 

The patrol cars traveled fast to reach the crime scene as soon as possible, the thunderous sound of sirens echoed through the city streets. Mike silently drove at full speed with his superior, to whom he had previously explained the details of the situation: a confrontation over territory between gangs was happening in a very conflictive part of town. Because of the shootings, the police were alerted and the officers who arrived immediately asked for backup due to the difficulty and danger of the situation.

Amid all the chaos, the masked, so-called 'hero' appeared. Said character was a man of rather short stature, which sometimes caused confusion, because it could turn out to be a teenager, as crazy as it sounded.

His outfit consisted of tight pants and several leather straps that served as support for the strange device he used to move through the air. In addition to this, he wore gloves, boots and a hooded jacket; all in black.

Furthermore, the jacket was adorned with a wing design on the back. Some people used to call them 'the wings of freedom' but the meaning or origin of the symbol was unknown to everyone. And despite this simple costume, what really hid the identity of the man was his mask; it had a simple design consisting of black and white sections, and it was impossible to see any of his face except for his eyes, which were already famous. Some people feared him, others admired him. Several myths, stories and urban legends were created around that mysterious character's orbs.

For Erwin, it was all pretty unreal, as if for some unknown reason, he had teleported to another dimension, where the whole 'superhero' thing was possible. It all felt like a cliché TV show and, even so, the man's curiosity was ever-present, he wanted to confirm those tales with his own eyes and see if that man was really as impressive as people described him.

Lost in his own thoughts, he did not notice when they arrived at the scene, the noise of the city mixed with that of patrol cars and the constant explosion of weapons that could be heard nearby.

In order to be less obvious, they parked a few blocks away and covered the rest of the way on foot, managing to fence the perimeter with strategically-placed units in key points, snipers aiming from the top of the surrounding buildings waiting for the order to shoot. The rest of the backup approached cautiously to observe the situation and to devise an action plan before joining the scene.

Erwin neared slowly, gun in hand and protected by a bulletproof vest, followed by Mike and the rest of the team; his feet ached to move faster, however, logic dictated that he should act with stealth.

"…And you think those little toys are gonna hurt me, asshole?" Uttered a rather robotic voice, quite possible altered on purpose and despite that fact, it sounded full of arrogance and contempt.

"I'm warning you idiot, don't get into grown-ups' fights, otherwise you'll leave here in a coffin" A second voice warned. "Do you think this is a place to be playing hero? This is none of your business, so I'll give you five seconds to move your disgusting ass out of my sight-"

Erwin, hidden behind a car that was parked a few meters from the spot, was finally able to observe the situation. His eyes widened as if in doing that gesture he would be able to capture more of the scene: several men were holed up on one side of the street, all pointing their weapons to the other side. The same situation was replicated at the opposite end of the street a few meters away. And amid all that was that man, unmissable, as they had described him: dark clothing, hood and a mask which rendered his identity completely unknown, and the strange device hanging from his hips. In his hands, also, the man carried some sort of giant blades that seemed very sharp.

"Don't be so full of yourself, you pig! Your shitty rambling is boring me, enough talking." the masked man spoke again. After that, everything happened too fast to process. The man activated his device from which ropes were released and hooked to one of the electricity poles and the man was quickly suspended in midair, with great ease to handle and maneuver, the man 'flew' over the gang to which the criminal who was previously arguing with him belonged. The others pointed their weapons and fired unsuccessfully again and again because he was very fast.

In the blink of an eye, with great agility the man used his weapons to attack the bandits, managing to make deep gashes on their bodies, some deadly others not quite. One by one they fell after letting out plaintive cries of pain that echoed all around. Both members of the opposite gang and the police watched the slaughter in amazement and shock. Blood sprayed through the air with each cut of those sharp blades into the bodies of the perpetrators.

"Go to hell, scum!" was heard before the masked man decapitated the delinquent, with whom he had been arguing previously, with a single movement. The man landed just when the headless corpse slumped on the pavement, looking in the direction of the remaining criminals. Said evildoers rushed out of the trance where they were in and fled, riding swiftly on the vehicles they employed as trenches during their confrontation.

Meanwhile, Erwin observed the massacre attentively; his eyes following every movement of that character and studying the environment at the same time, in order to plan the best way to step in and successfully capture him. Within seconds he came up with several different plans, analyzing the possible consequences of each one.

Finally, he decided that the best course of action would be to incapacitate him in some way to prevent him from escape. Right next to the place where the man landed, was a structure about to collapse; Erwin assumed that if he shot at it, the debris would fall on the criminal, giving him enough time to apprehend him.

The blond proceeded according to plan and shot at the structure, however he made a mistake: he didn't take into account the criminal's dexterity and agility. As soon as the bullet impacted, the man nimbly dodged the rubble and looked to source of the bullet. But Erwin was quite fast as well, therefore seeing as his plan had failed, he used that moment to come out of hiding and quickly approach the masked man, pointing his weapon, fearless despite the events he had just witnessed.

"My name is Erwin Smith, chief of Sina City Police Department, you are wanted for a large amount of crimes, which is why I'm placing you under arrest" he spoke decidedly, looking at the masked man with cold eyes and ready to react at his first movement. He was sure the man wouldn't move since he would shoot if he tried.

"Oh! So we have a new chief? The previous one and I got along really well" He huffed out a cynical laugh. "Well, Erwin Smith, nice to meet you, unfortunately I don't agree with your statement…" that said with a swift move, much faster than Erwin's reaction time, the masked man stood in front of him, delivering a kick so strong to his hands that it managed to send the gun flying and firing, upon impacting the ground.

The blond couldn't believe what was happening, those agile movements were almost superhuman, just like he had been told. And from the pain on his hand due the kick was acute, he would not be surprised if it was broken.

"We'll see each other again, Erwin Smith, more often that you think" He pronounced with finality, then triggered his device again and was propelled through the air, quickly disappearing from sight. The succession of events was so brief no one had any time to react, officers were still hiding, stunned looks on their faces, and snipers remained at attention but without orders to shoot (and even if they had received one, they probably would not have been able to act on time). Once the masked man disappeared, several officers came out of hiding and called ambulances to tend the few who had not yet died from their wounds.

"Are you all right sir?" Mike asked to his superior, hurrying to help him snap out of it after everything that had taken place.

"I'm fine, sorry for having acted so hastily"

"That man had never attacked a policeman before," Mike said "…But I see it wasn't too critical" he concluded, after having checked Erwin.

"I still can't believe what happened, it's like some kind of insane nightmare. But I swear one of my priorities from now on will be to catch this man! We simply can't allow such rudimentary and barbaric methods of justice" he announced with conviction.

"What you propose is no easy task" The officer stated. Mike was willing to help Erwin but he did not continue, as he was a man of few words.

"I understand, but even so, I'll do everything to arrest him. That cheap excuse of bringing criminals to so-called justice, doesn't give him the right to end their lives, this has to stop as soon as possible." The ambulances arrived and Erwin was treated by paramedics who confirmed that the kick had not caused serious injuries; he was given medicine for pain and allowed to return to the police department with Mike, followed by the rest of the patrols at the scene.

The blond's mind pored over everything that had just happened. If it had been a particularly unpleasant nightmare, he would have liked to wake up, but he knew it was not the case. And despite the atrocities he witnessed, that night, his chest swelled with a new feeling for him: a challenge. That was it, because of all his years in service, nothing had ever come close to a challenge of this level, to catch an uncatchable man and put him in jail, that would be the purpose of his existence from that day forward.

* * *

 

"So? How'd today go?"

"Tch, if it hadn't been for the nosy policemen I would've probably gotten a good amount."

"Well, at least you were able to get rid of some troublemakers, right? So come on! 'Super hero'!" the woman vigorously patted the man's back as she cackled obnoxiously.

"Stop calling me that, four-eyes!" he complained, threatening her with his fist.

"Okay, okay, don't get mad. Such temper! No one would think you're one of the good guys going by that attitude" she continued teasing.

"Hanji, you best get out of my sight before you join those idiots in the same hell," he threatened her again showing a very irritated expression, frowning as much as he could and a malicious gleam in his eyes.

"Marry me already, Levi!" Hanji continued making fun of him. "You know you can't get rid of me. What is a super hero without his loyal mad scientist, after all?" She stuck out her tongue and left the office bouncing childishly. Meanwhile, Levi only stared at her with contempt, wondering how he could stand such an annoying woman. They had known each other since childhood, but she never ceased to irritate him with her comments and excitable personality.

The raven-haired man went to an adjacent room, that could only be accessed from his office, where he kept a closet. He began removing his clothes, to replace them with the classic business suit: black jacket with matching trousers, white shirt and, this time, a gray satin tie that went perfectly with his eyes.

Levi Ackerman owned a prestigious tech company, located in the commercial district, along with the city's biggest companies. In Levi's business, among other things, millionaire medical and technological research was carried out. This improved the quality of life of low-income citizens by providing them with access to cutting-edge products from said fields. But also, a good percentage of the company's income was donated to charity, thus making Levi famous for his generosity and kindness, even though those closest to him didn't understand how an apathetic man like himself could have such a giving heart.

The hooded coat, pants, boots, gloves and other articles of clothing were carefully stored along with the 3D Maneuver Gear within a hidden compartment in Ackerman's closet. Who then went to sit in front of his desk to begin sorting the huge amount of papers that had piled up, either pending revision or approval.

"Tch, stupid paperwork…" he complained while bored with signing "Erwin Smith, huh?" he said to himself when he recalled the events of the day. He remembered the penetrating stare of those intense blue eyes, which showed a great deal of determination and courage. Very different from the former police chief, a coward who had never come close to catch him. "This is gonna be interesting. It was about time!" the raven smiled softly, relaxing his hard demeanor.

Without him noticing, a small flame had started burning inside of him, his life had become quite pointless the previous months, there were nothing difficult for him to do, but he thought that Erwin would definitively put an end to his monotonous days, because he would quite possible turn out to be challenge.

To be continued…


	2. Masquerade Part I

 

 

**Masquerade**

**Part I**

It had been a very stressful, but also quite encouraging, and exhausting first couple of weeks for Erwin who, at the time, was taking a relaxing shower after a hard day’s work. Pride swelled in his chest, as he felt a sense of accomplishment from fulfilling his dream at his new job. He had restlessly persevered, day and night, gone through incredible mental and physical fatigue, never given up to one day achieve that much—desired and deserved promotion. Being chief of police was an exceedingly important position, which gave him additional responsibilities and obligations, but it paid off well, knowing that, in his position, he had a lot more power to end the evil that haunted every corner of that imposing city.

He got out of the shower after about 20 minutes under the hot stream, grabbed a towel to wipe the condensation that had fogged the mirror and went about looking at himself meticulously. He noticed the purple tinge and bagginess under his eyes, evidence of weariness and lack of sleep. His skin looked dull as well, not that he was sick, but the few weeks in the seat were already taking their toll on his body. However, the blond knew well that the extra effort he had been putting in lately, as far as his professional duties were concerned, had nothing to do with it; it was rather the fact that he spent a great deal of his downtime investigating any and everything related to the peculiar character he had met weeks back.

Silverwire had visited the the blue—eyed man, who had not even come close to reaching him, a few more times. Erwin knew that catching him was his duty and he was determined to do so, no matter the cost. Therefore, he dedicated long hours to trying to decipher any clue that would lead him to that man’s identity, that let him find how to capture him, predict his movements or anything to help him reach his goal. But he realized it was an arduous task that, far from discouraging, impelled his fruitless investigation.

 The blonde wrapped a towel around his waist and exited the bathroom to get dressed. He would have some days off, by Pixis’s request, nay order to rest, due to his worn-out demeanor. _“You shouldn’t push yourself”_ were his boss’s words and Erwin thanked him, beause the man was right, he definitely needed to rest, before he fell ill.

—Would you be proud of me, father?— He whispered, almost inaudibly while gazing at an old photo he kept hidden in a book, he looked at it for a couple more minutes and returned it to its hiding place and the book to its shelf. He dressed and went about fixing coffee; as the machine worked, he took a pile of folders and placed them on the kitchen table, reading them for the fifth or sixth time since he had brought them home. Said reports were ridden with highlights and notes; anything that caught his attention, any inkling was emphasized.

—I have no idea how or when, but I’ll certainly catch you!— he said to a blurry picture from a newspaper clipping, which showed the hooded, masked figure of Erwin’s obsession. Having arrived at the point where he spent great many hours thinking on how to locate him, his determination and sense of commitment had become a hang up. The man poured himself a strong cup of coffee, no sugar, and sat once more with the reports in hand but in that moment his cellphone began to ring.

—Hello?... Oh, Petra, how are you? ...I’m fine, thank you. What can I help you with?... Yes… I understand… and, is it strictly necessary that I attend?... Well, thank you for letting me know, see you around.— He hung up and took a large swig of coffee.

Petra was a police officer, who mainly handled clerical tasks and did not work on the field. The woman had recently called to give him the news that, in exactly one week, the annual police gala would be taking place, it was a charity event and the funds it raised were destined to helping those in need. The young woman informed him that, since he was the chief of police, assisting was a must. _“Clearing your mind a little will be good for you, chief”_ was what she had happily stated.

—I guess you’re right,— he sighed —I’ll have to find a good suit and mask, then.— He gave a slight smile. He was not thrilled about the gala, nevertheless, if it was compelling, he would go. Hence, he decided to use his day off to go shopping and find and outfit for the event.

 

* * *

 

—This time it was too easy, that bank’s security was really weak and it wasn’t complicated to funnel the money into your accounts, Levi.

—You didn’t leave a trace of breach, right?— The businessman spoke, serious and authoritative.

—Of course not! What do take us for, brother?— Replied the young woman, slightly annoyed.

—We’re the best and most brilliant hackers in history! You know you don’t need to worry about anything, Levi, this was a piece of cake to us.— The man proudly declared.

—I trust you. Well done, Isabel, Farlan— He said simply.

Farlan and Isabel were old friends of Levi’s; they had known each other since their teens and the pair turned out to be the best hackers in the city or, at least, the best Levi knew, but really, their work was always impeccable. They knew that Ackerman was Silverwire’s real identity and shared his ideals, consequently, they did not hesitate to join him. The pair of techies were in charge of poking around delinquents’ computers and servers, banks and any place necessary by means of their networks and security knowledge; that way, they were able to acquire valuable information. They were also responsible for deviating the money from the criminals’ accounts to the multiple ones owned by the entrepreneur.

The entire process was pretty long and complicated but to them it was very exciting. They needed to make sure to hide their IP addresses and tracks well, to avoid being caught. Furthermore, since moving large sums of money into the one account would be suspicious, they took care to break it down in fractions, transferring them to accounts in different parts of the world.

Said accounts obviously belonged to Levi, but had been opened under the names of various contacts or even by himself, under fake names. For someone with that much money, it was too easy to accomplish. These reasons contributed to Levi and his crew not getting caught nor linked to the transactions. Since the money was transferred in fractions to different locations, it was impossible to trace where it would end up; and to leave no room for doubt, Farlan and Isabel manipulated bank statements to their convenience, because the security of said institution’s systems rarely posed a problem.

—How about we celebrate, since the mission was a total success? On my brother.— Isabel said cheerfully. Despite them not being blood—related, the girl considered him a sibling since he saved her from a rape attempt, which was how they had met, years before.

—I second that!—Joined Farlan, both smiled widely at their friend and boss.

—Tch, you never change.— Was the only thing Levi said, clearly accepting the pair’s suggestion. As they made their way outside, Levi’s phone rang. –Wait, I have to get this.— He told his friends and left his office to take the call in the hallway.

 _“Hi, Levi, it’s me!”_ was heard from the other end.

—Petra. Do you have anything new for me?— Levi replied sharply.

 _“The annual police gala will be held in exactly one week, I’m sure you already got an invitation”_ the woman cut to the chase when she noticed the coldness in Levi’s tone, it seemed like he wasn’t in the best of moods.

—Yes, I’m aware, what about it?

_“Well, just wanted you to know it’s important that you’re there, because I’ve managed to convince Chief Erwin to go as well, I remember you were very interested in meeting him face to face and this will be a great chance.”_

—Good, thanks.— the man replied drily, hanging up immediately and leaving no opportunity for the woman to add anything else.

Petra Ral was actually an infiltrated “agent” in the police department and she was Levi’s informant. Both her and her colleagues: Auruo Brossard, Gunther Shulz y Erd Gin; actively worked different roles in the taskforce. But they also knew Silverwire’s real identity and subscribed to his cause, for a number of reasons. They reported on the myriad of criminal organizations, of cases that were being investigated, provided him with confidential information, among other things; always contributing to protect his identity, as well as to thwarting police work if they thought they might intervene with Silverwire’s agenda.

The squad was effective and functional, all its members more than capable to collaborate with Levi without being exposed and incarcerated for being involved with a most wanted “criminal”.

—This is getting interesting…— The businessman said to himself, joining his friends and proceeding to take them to some restaurant, where they would celebrate their most recent hit.

* * *

 

There were a couple of days left before the gala, but Erwin had no time to think about that. He had returned to his tasks after a short reprieve and he was on a new operation. This time, they had a robbery gone wrong at the Central Bank of Sina, thanks to their top security system and the speed at which police reached the location; however, when he realized he was cornered, the robber had taken the people inside the building as hostages.

The criminal threatened the people, who were laying face-down on the ground, as per his orders, with a gun. Luckily, it was a holiday in the city, which meant fewer employees and clients, fifteen to twenty people in total, but not one of them with the ability to take him on.

—How’s the situation?— Erwin asked at his arrival.

—See for yourself, boss.— Gunther replied, pointing at the screen displaying footage from the bank’s cameras. In the monitor, the thief could be seen, moving frantically from one end to the other, yelling and threatening the hostages. —This is bad. He seems very unstable and could harm the civilians any second.— The dark—haired officer, known for his quick wit and ability to predict situations, advised.

—It’ll be hard to negotiate with him, but we must try. Where’s Armin?

—Here, sir! Apologies for the delay.— The young man apologized, he looked agitated, like he had run there. Armin was the force’s negotiator. The man held the position despite his age (around 22 years old), due to his superior intellect and ease with words.

—Armin, we have a delicate situation,— the blond began–as you can see, the unsub shows erratic behavior and we fear the worst. We need to calm him down and convince him to let the hostages go.

—Understood.— Armin had recently joined the task force and thus little experience, in fact, he had gotten the job a few months prior to Erwin’s transfer. He had joined as negotiator along with his best friend, Eren Jaeger, and Eren’s stepsister, Mikasa, who had both joined as officers. The three of them were childhood friends and had decided on the police department for personal reasons.

Because Armin lacked physical strength and agility (unlike his two friends), but stood out for his wit, the job of negotiator suited him perfectly. He had already managed to get two criminals to surrender under similar circumstances. After all, studies showed that ninety percent of these kinds of cases were solved through persuasion; however, only with a skilled negotiator present, since any misused word or phrase could result in a tragedy.

—We must draw an action plan— Erwin remarked. –Eren, Mikasa, please come here.

—Sir!— the siblings reported in unison.

—This is the plan:—he began instructing –Armin will be in charge of the unsub’s surrender, the main goal is to get the man to turn himself in peacefully, without harming any hostages. As soon as that happens, and he decides to come out, Mikasa, Eren and I will go in to secure the perimeter and the hostages, standing between them and the robber. Meanwhile, Gunther, you and the others will arrest him. 

—Yes, sir!— The officers replied, hoping everything turned out as expected.

A megaphone was handed to Armin and he walked as close to the bank’s entrance as he could, so that the robber could hear him when he spoke. He was accompanied by Erwin and his friends, the four of them took cover behind a patrol and set the plan in motion:

—My- my name is Armin Arlert…— he began shakily, but his nerves went away when the chief squeezed his shoulder to let him know it would be okay. —I’m from the police department, and I’d like us to discuss the conditions for releasing the hostages…— he continued more confidently. –I’m going to call one of the phones in the bank and I ask you to please answer my call. I repeat: I need you to please pick up so we can talk.

That said, the young man put the megaphone down and grabbed a cellphone, dialing the number provided. They were all crossing their fingers for the man to pick up the phone because, if he didn’t, it would be a lot harder to get to him. The phone rang and rang, and he had to try several times until, right before giving up and going for the speaker again, they picked up.

 _“Hello?”_ The voice on the other end was calm and spoke in a low tone, which was strange, considering the perp’s attitude, from what they had seen on the monitors.

—H-Hi! it’s Armin, I’m glad you took my call.— The blond started with the friendliest tone he could muster. – What’s your name?

_“I’m Lance”_

—Nice to meet you, Lance. –Armin began talking to the thief. He asked him personal questions, some of which the man answered and when he did not, the blond did not try to wheedle a response, but rather going for a different question. All of this he did in the hopes of creating a profile: his personality, his character, his thought process and his objectives or reasons to be there. Besides gradually earning his trust, to make it easier to convince him of freeing the hostages. Meanwhile, Gunther watched him carefully through the screens, ready to alert Erwin if the man made any move that could jeopardize the citizens involved.

—Lance, you know why I’m calling, right? We need you to let the hostages go. Not for free, obviously, we’d like to know your terms and we’ll do what we can to meet them.— The young agent stated when he felt the criminal was stable and trusting enough.

_“I get it, but this isn’t easy, you know? I know you won’t let me go, this went really really wrong. It wasn’t supposed to be like this. They just had to give me the fucking money! That way I could save my home and nobody would get hurt.”_

Lance was a middle-aged man who had, unfortunately, never had a good head for business; he used to be addicted to gambling and did not always win. He was also extremely irresponsible, which “lead to (amounted to)” great debt over the years, to the point of facing eviction, leaving him, along with his wife and children, homeless. Desperate, he decided to go for the bank, he needed a large sum of money and knew he would not be granted another loan. But Lance was no career criminal, therefore everything took a turn for the worse, and a prison sentence awaited him, the second he set foot outside of the building.

—I know you have money trouble, but innocent bystanders shouldn’t have to pay. They’re having a really bad time and if it’s within your means, we’d like them to be left out of this as soon as possible.

 _“I want you to promise me you’ll pay my mortgage, so my family have a place to live. That’s all I want, I don’t care if I have to rot in jail for the rest of my life.”_ The man had made up his mind, he knew what he wanted, what he needed and since he was going to be locked up anyway, he had to make sure it wasn’t all in vain.

Armin told him he needed to check with his superiors and that he would call shortly. While they assessed the situation, the man resumed pacing nervously.

—We can get some sort of aid from the government. We’ll brief them on the situation and if it’s impossible to get donations for the payment, at least we can relocate them.— Erwin pointed out, so Armin dialed once more. The thief quickly scrambled to answer, this time around, he seemed to be as anxious to be done with it as the rest of them.

The young officer relayed the information to Lance, he gave him his word that whatever they promised would be delivered at all cost. He explained that Lance would be tried and that his sentence would be reduced, since there had been no victims or wounded people. The perp agreed to everything, including his surrender and the release of the hostages. Armin explained that some officers would go into the building to check on the hostages as he walked out, and that he should not be alarmed.

—Get ready!— Erwin bellowed. Mikasa and Eren took their positions at each side of the bank’s entrance, awaiting his exit. The doors opened and the thief walked out slowly. But he was pointing his gun forward, and not raising his hands, as instructed. As soon as he cleared the building to allow them in, the three officers entered the premises without ever losing sight of the thief.

Outside, Gunther and the rest of the uniforms approached cautiously, being that the man was not lowering his weapon. Inside the bank, Mikasa and Eren tended to the hostages, as Erwin covered the exit, where the man stood. Then, the unexpected happened: Lance quickly ran into the bank, without leaving his weapon and with the officers unable to stop him. Erwin watched the man return and move to the stairs at the back; he did not think it convenient to shoot him at the time, in front of the civilians, with the intention of avoiding a tragedy.

—Stay with the hostages, we don’t know if he’ll come back from the other side!— The blond ordered Eren and Mikasa,  and went after the fugitive.

He ran up several flights of stairs, following him closely, he would catch up any minute and there would be no escape. Erwin watched as the robber scurried away through the door that lead to the roof, he did not know what he would find, so he proceeded with caution.

He walked out onto the roof, looking for the man and finding him not too far away from himself, the perp was headed towards the edge, looking for a way out, knowing that there wasn’t one.

—Surrender now and your sentence will be reconsidered —The policeman offered, without lowering his gun, despite the fact that the man was no longer pointing the gun at him.

—I won’t let you put me away! I’d rather die than go to jail!— inexplicably, the man had completely changed his mind; he looked jumpy, and frightened. One of his hands reached into an inner pocket of his jacket, and withdrew an object, which he showed to Erwin while he approached, laughing hysterically.

—Stop and surrender!— Erwin warned once more, as he spotted the object.

—It’s a grenade. Fortunately, among gamblers, I have several contacts who can get this type of things,— he explained —I don’t plan on going to jail, officer, and since I’m not gonna survive, I’ll take you with me!— The man meant to set off the grenade and explode, ending with both his life and Erwin’s in an instant, even so, he had taken the time to explain, because he was afraid of dying.

For the first time in his life, Erwin felt like he had no escape; if he tried to run, the robber could shoot him, there was no indication that any of his partners would come to back him and, in any case, he did not want any more people to die.

He was in deep trouble and did not have much time to think, despite being quick-witted and calculating, he saw very few possibilities in this situation. Despite his serious demeanor, beads of sweat were already starting at his brow. But once more, the unexpected happened: the moment the man put his finger through the safety of the grenade to activate it, Erwin felt how he was lifted abruptly and carried away.

Right on time, Silverwire had appeared, propelled by his strange contraption. The masked figure extracted Erwin from that dangerous situation in a matter of seconds.

And there he was, flying as if in a dream, in the arms of that man, who held him so tightly. Gusts of wind swept his golden hair wildly about and kept him from completely opening his eyes; adrenaline rushed through his body, beyond afraid, he was bloody excited, heart beating strongly; for the first time in a long time he felt truly alive.

As he raised his gaze to look at the man, his eyes slowly examined the deep and penetrating silver of the other’s, managing to ascertain for himself the reason behind his name.

—Silvewire…— He uttered, nearly inaudibly, when his feet touched ground again. The masked man had taken him to the rooftop of a nearby building.

—Chief.— That robotic voice spoke. Before Erwin managed to say something else, the heavy explosion caught both their attentions. Lance had engaged the grenade and blown himself up, in order to avoid jail. If it hadn’t been for the mysterious figure, the blond would have also died in that explosion.

—Why did you save me? Wouldn’t it have been easier to get rid of me? I would’ve died along with that thief if it hadn’t been for you.— Erwin asked, trying, to no avail, for his shock and nerves  not to show.

The man’s gray eyes landed on his counterpart’s blue ones, for a few seconds their strong and challenging gazes met, making a slight jolt go through their bodies. Silverwire could have left without saying anything, leaving Erwin to his doubts; but still, for some inexplicable reason, he chose to speak.

—That scum was the only one who deserved to die,— he remarked drily, taking a few steps toward the officer —besides, I need you alive, things would get real boring around here without you.— Though his face was hidden, Erwin pictured a mocking smile on the man’s lips.

The blond did not expect those words, he was left speechless, watching as his savior engaged his device once more and sped away from the crime scene; leaving him stunned, full of questions no one would answer, and questioning his own feelings on what had just transpired. He had to admit it: he was thrilled.  

* * *

—I saw it all on Tv, _Silverwire_ , why did you save that guy? Isn’t he the one who wants to put you away?— Hanji asked, the moment Levi stealthily entered his office at Ackerman Enterprises. Every time he left as “hero”, the woman used to follow his moves through the news broadcasts, and awaited his return in his office, to mob him with her funny commentary.

—Don’t you ever shut your mouth?— Levi complained, giving her his usual hostile glare.

—I just want to know what you’re planning.— She approached and began helping him out of his 3D maneuvering gear, which, by the by, was a Hanji Zoe exclusive creation.

—I need that useless man alive to carry out my objectives. But it seems like he can’t look after himself, and I’ll be forced to do it for him. The rest is none of your business.— Lately, he was becoming more talkative, first with Erwin and now with Hanji, and it pissed him off to no end.

—If you say so…— she replied, smiling widely. She knew that she would get no more information from him.

 

* * *

 

The strange, tiring day was finally over, Erwin lay sprawled on his bed, in just his underwear. He was going over the report on the day’s events, lost in his reading.

 _“How does he find out about everything? How did he get there right on time? Why did he save me?”_ he asked himself over and over, unable to make any sense of it. The blond sighed and stared at the ceiling, when a voice snapped him out of his reverie.

—Working late, boss?— the younger man spoke from Erwin’s bedroom door.

—I thought you were asleep, Eren.—

—I was, but I wondered…— he paused, doubting – could I sleep with you tonight?—

The blond simply patted the bed beside himself, granting the young officer permission to join him. His emerald-green eyes shone with mirth and he happily lay beside his superior, resting his head on the pillow.

—Rest, Eren

—Good night, boss, have a good rest as well.— Normally, Erwin did not let his “lovers” spend the night at his apartment, let alone in his own bed, but it was past midnight and Eren looked tired from all that had transpired the previous day and their recent tryst.

—I’ll try…— He said, getting comfortable to sleep, but carrying on with his musings about that “hero” who had saved him from certain death. Finally, with the memory of that cold, penetrating gaze, he fell asleep at last.

 

To be continued…

 

 


	3. Chapter 3

The day of the annual police gala finally arrived, and the city’s richest were invited, with the purpose of getting them to donate to the department. Said donations would then be distributed to several charities, destined to Sina’s less-fortunate population.

  As current chief of police, it was part of Erwin’s duty to attend the gala. He also had to help with making a good impression on the pompous millionaires on the guest list, and thus persuade them to give more to their noble cause. Pixis had explained to him that the position of chief was not only about going out and arresting criminals. Being chief meant being a public figure, and therefore he should make himself known in society. Furthermore, there would come times when he would have to make appearances in media.

  Erwin was not thrilled by any of this, but he considered it wrong that his life was limited to his job and to occasionally sharing his bed with a man who felt the same needs. Love had no place in his life, however, nothing kept him from meeting people outside the workplace to establish a friendship of sorts; after all, it was good to make contacts that could be useful in the future.

  Though the blond did not plan or feel the need to get involved romantically, tending to his baser needs had never been a hindrance. Erwin was, and always had been, gay; a fact which he discovered very early on and which had at no time presented a problem for him. Furthermore, being past his thirties, he was more than used to the lifestyle.

  Upon his arrival in Sina, days before entering the police department, Erwin had the chance to meet Eren Jaeger in one of the local bars. The young, twenty-something man, had introduced himself with a radiant smile. He had mentioned something about having problems with his father and that that was the reason why he was blowing off steam at one of his favourite haunts.

  After a few drinks and a lively conversation about nothing in particular, the alcohol and the desire took care of the rest. They ended up in a hotel room, satiating their lust. They did it several times and ways during that night; the next day, when Eren woke up, he realized his nightly companion was no longer there. On the nightstand, he had left enough money to pay for the room, there was no note, phone number or address. All he knew about that handsome blond was that his name was Erwin and he had just arrived in the city for work, however, neither had mentioned what they did for a living.

   Eren had been a member of the police taskforce for a few weeks, along with his best friend, Armin, and his sister, Mikasa. It was both a dream and a goal that the trio had set out to accomplish many years before. Eren lived with his parents, Carla and Grisha Jaeger; who had adopted Mikasa at a very young age.

   The reason why she had been orphaned, was that her parents were murdered in a robbery at their house. That day, her mother made her hide in a closet and told her not to come out under any circumstance. Between frightened sobs, the girl fell asleep, only to find out the next day that both her parents had been killed, and her home, ransacked.

Because the Ackermans had been so close to the Jaegers, the news of their murder greatly affected the latter, who then requested to look after the child. Her custody was granted to them, since her only living relative had not been around for a long time, and their whereabouts were unknown.

  Mister and Mrs. Ackerman’s killers were never caught, thus Mikasa’s decision to, one day, join the city’s police force. Not to find the murderers, which she knew was impossible; but rather to use her strength in some way, to keep situations like hers from happening again. Becoming an officer was the only way she’d be able to contribute to putting thieves behind bars and as a result, less people would have to experience the pain and suffering that had victimized her.

  As for Eren, he witnessed all that his step sister had to endure: the psychological trauma that she only managed to overcome with numerous therapy sessions, the shift in her personality to a colder, nearly emotionless person, the endless nights when nightmares would not let her sleep. Once recovered, she shared her dream with him and Eren promised to join her in getting justice.

   Armin’s story was similar to Mikasa’s. His parents died when he was very young, victims of a car accident, caused by a drunk driver. He was raised by his grandfather and, despite everything, the blond was rather happy with him. He knew Eren since childhood and had later befriended Mikasa. At eighteen, when the three friends graduated high school; Armin’s grandfather was murdered, unwittingly involved, along with other civilians, in a gang shooting.

   For that reason, Armin chose to adopt his friends’ goal. Though not being particularly strong or agile, and never having tried to cultivate said traits, Armin decided that his best option was to draw on his main asset: his intelligence. Thereby managing to obtain a scholarship to attend university for psychology and sociology, with emphasis in criminology. And because of his academic achievements, it was no hardship to get hired by the police department.

   To Eren’s surprise, a couple of days after his casual encounter with the blond gentleman, the man in question was introduced to him as his new superior.

“What’s going on, Eren? Do you know him?” Armin asked, ever the perceptive one, when he notice his friend’s sudden nervous demeanor and wide eyes, as he faced the man.

“No! Of course not! How would I know him?” He tried to mask his nerves.

“You like him!” It was a statement, not a question. Armin and Mikasa had known about his sexual orientation for many years.

“NO!” he nearly shouted, getting glances from a few of the officers that were stood nearby. “I mean, yeah, he’s handsome and all, but it’s not what you think, Armin.” He assured, lowering his voice so that only his best friend could hear him.

“Okay, just be careful, Eren, remember he’s our new boss.” He said in a serious tone to a frowning Eren.

  Erwin on his part, was surprised to see that the young man he had shared a nice evening with was there and would become one of his subordinates. Nevertheless, he kept it from showing on his face; fully capable of controlling his emotions and hiding any trace of surprise, unlike the green-eyed boy.

  After that, it was only a matter of time for Eren to approach him to talk about all that haunted. He expressed how uncomfortable it was for him to work under someone he had slept with. The blond kindly told him he had nothing to worry about and that was how quickly, both came to trust each other, and ended up sleeping together again that night, then again, and again… To finally reach an agreement, in which both sated their lust with each other and it did not affect them in a professional, or personal level, since there were no feelings involved.

  To Erwin, that kind of convenient relationship was more than fine: having a fit young man with whom he could decompress, and thus not need to find anyone else; which saved him quite a bit of time and effort. It was also beneficial to satisfy his needs, without getting seriously involved, which he wanted to avoid at all costs, due to his prior experiences. Also, being with a man as wise and experienced as Erwin, he got to learn a lot of things. While they did meet up to have sex, they also enjoyed talking about topics other than their work.

  It was a win-win situation for both and the only thing they had to worry about, was keeping those who were in on it to a minimum. Certainly, being chief and subordinate was slightly inconvenient, though Erwin’s integrity and professionalism were in his favor, before anyone’s judgement.

* * *

 

  Erwin had the day off and in the evening, he was to attend the gala. Eren arrived at his flat in the afternoon, as he had received a call from the blond, telling him to head over as soon as his shift at the station was over.

“Good afternoon, chief.” He greeted politely as the door opened.

“Hello, Eren, thank you for coming, despite the short notice.” The older man waved him inside. Erwin’s apartment was very modern and spacious, perhaps more so than a bachelor would need, but he felt comfortable and didn’t mind the solitude; after all, he had lived alone most of his life.

 “Don’t mention it.” The young man smiled cheerfully. “I wanted to come, and we never know if we’ll be too busy, so we should take every chance.”

“Yes, I feel the same way.” Erwin admitted.

  Eren walked to the guest bedroom because, since the first time they met at Erwin’s, the blond had explained to him that he wasn’t fond of doing it on his own bed; Eren failed to understand why, but he paid it no mind. Erwin followed and both began to divest quickly.

 “Are you going to the gala tonight, Eren?” The blond asked as he unbuttoned his shirt.

“I actually hadn’t decided, but Mikasa wants to go, so I think I should join her.”

“In that case, we should hurry, I have to go, so I guess we’ll meet there.” The blond smiled, earning a similar response from his partner.

  The younger man, laid back on the bed, completely naked; Erwin did not take long to join him, starting by leaving small kisses down his neck and chest, with the occasional lick. This was part of their game, but they never kissed; they both found it very strange, since kisses on the lips were given out of love. Both agreed on this, in addition to, despite his age, and Erwin hadn’t confessed it yet, he had never dared to kiss anyone on the mouth. The reason why? He had never truly felt love towards anybody. He had had flings and romances in his youth, but although he had shared his bed with many, the same could not be said for his life, as it had never been shared with another. It could be argued that he had never given his first kiss.

  On the contrary, Eren, who had had some partners before, always wound up hopelessly in love; and thus, suffering in the end. Recently, he opted for a different lifestyle, and Erwin arrived at the right time to get him used to it. The pair was more than comfortable with the relationship, hence it was easy to _meet_ and then work together, as if nothing had happened.

  After a while, both men reached their climax, moving to lay on their backs, looking at the ceiling, panting and glistening with sweat.

“You can use this bathroom, I’ll use the one in my room.” Erwin pointed out, rose and handed him a clean towel. Eren nodded and the other man exited to his own bedroom for a shower. He needed to prepare for the ball and Eren also needed to leave to get ready and be able to arrive on time.

“See you at the gala!” Eren said as he walked out of the apartment.

“Take care, Eren.” The man replied from his room, were he was already dressing for the occasion.

 

* * *

 

 

“Thanks for bringing me, Levi!” The bespectacled woman nearly shouted, as she got off the limousine.

“Don’t mention it, I had no choice. It was this or coming alone.”

“You’re always so sweet.” She laughed and began walking toward the entrance of the venue, with difficulty, since she was not used to wearing high heels. Aside from the shoes, she wore a simple, full-length, olive dress and her hair in a bun, in lieu of the usual ponytail. In addition to the ensemble, was a mask that only covered her eyes, in white, with small stones, simulating emeralds embedded to the edge of the accessory.

  Levi, on his part, wore a suit in all black: shoes, slacks, shirt and jacket. Tied around his neck was a black cravat and he had a pocket square to match.  
The buttons on his jacket appeared to be made of silver, and a chain from the same material finished off the ensemble. But what really got all the attendees’ attention, from the moment he entered the place, was the mask on his face, seeing as it was identical to the one worn by the infamous hero, Silverwire, unlike whose, Levi’s did not cover his entire face, only down to his nose, exposing his delicate lips.

_“How risqué!”_

_“He’s only trying to draw attention to himself!”_

_“He’s always been an eccentric.”_

  Were some of the phrases that could be heard from the crowd of spectators, who could not fathom how a guest of the police gala would dress like their most wanted criminal. It was a joke. Though, to Levi, it was his way of showing that there’s no better place to hide than in plain sight.

  The magnate and his date sat close to the food table, at her request, where Levi got a glass of wine and started drinking, only to make time while the opportunity to meet the goal for the evening presented itself.

“Ladies and gentlemen,” Erd’s voice was heard at the microphone. “please be welcome to Sina Police Department’s annual ball. It’s an honor to have you here tonight. Feel free to approach our assistants, who are in charge of gathering your donations. Please remember that the collected funds are destined to charities across our beautiful city, as per usual.”  Erd waved to one side of the room, with tables and some young women overseeing said task.

“Tonight, we’d also like to introduce to you our new department chief, who you have probably heard about already, but please let us formally welcome Erwin Smith.” At the sound of Erwin’s name, Levi focused on the stage, without being obvious about it to anyone, of course.

  The blond wasn’t as dressed up as some, but just as well, his attire was appropriate for the occasion: powder blue shirt, beige slacks and brown dress shoes, plus a navy jacket that caught the eye, but still suited the other items. He wore no tie, but he did have a pocket square. And the final touch, a white mask that covered only the right side of his face, à la Phantom of the Opera.

 Erwin climbed the steps confidently and took the microphone, cleared his throat and smiled cordially before saying:

“Welcome everyone. My name Erwin Smith, I’m the chief of police, and I’d just like to thank you for your support tonight. We hope you have fun and, also, I’d like to clearly state my commitment to this town. I want everybody to be aware that the police department and myself do all that’s in our hands to protect its citizens, day in and day out. And we won’t rest until each and every criminal is eradicated from this city.” At the end of his speech, there was thunderous applause. The population in general was trusting, for the blond’s achievements were well-known and the department usually accomplished what they set out to do and, if they didn’t, there was also Silverwire who, despite having his own methods, was accepted by most.

  The chief descended into the party, kicking off his mingling duties. Meanwhile, Levi moved closer to Auruo and addressed him with authority:

“Auruo!”

“Mister Ackerman, how are you?” He greeted politely, attempting to imitate Levi’s calm style, as per usual.

“Can’t complain.” He walked closer to the officer. “Tell me, Auruo, isn’t it true that this year I donated a hundred motor units to the police department? I think it’d be a good idea to let the new chief know.”

“You’re right, sir. It’d be a good idea.” Levi sighed when Auruo didn’t get the hint.

“Why don’t you do me the favor of introducing us? I think it would be rude if I spoke about the donation myself.” He asked.

“Right away!” Auruo finally understood and, slightly embarrassed, approached his boss, dodging the curious guests who were looking to talk to him. “Chief!” He tried to catch his attention.

“What is it, Auruo?” He asked, when he heard he was being called.

“Chief Erwin, please come with me. It’s important.” Erwin excused himself from his companions and followed Auruo who led him right in front of Levi. A shiver ran down his spine as he saw the man: short and wearing a mask very similar to Silverwire’s. Naturally, he didn’t allow his reaction to be seen and showed a kind face as they were introduced.

“Chief, allow me to introduce Mister Levi Ackerman, owner of Ackerman Enterprises.”

“It’s an honor to meet you in person, Mister Smith.” Levi extended his hand.

“The pleasure is mine, please call me Erwin.” The officer shook the man’s hand firmly, meeting his eyes. Another shiver went down his back, when he saw that the other’s eyes extremely resembled those belonging to the object of his obsession.

“Mister Ackerman is a regular donor. This year he made a generous contribution of a hundred motor units to our department.” Auruo explained solemnly, and then indicated his retreat, so they could continue their conversation.

  Erwin and Levi chatted for quite a while. Levi explained what he did for a living, so Erwin understood he was a multimillionaire. And like any rich person, he was eccentric and did as he pleased, the mask was a testament to that. Nevertheless, curious and calculating as the policeman was, he tried to figure out the man’s true intentions.

“You are very bold, mister Ackerman!”

“Why do you say that?”

“Wearing that mask to the police gala, knowing that he’s our most wanted criminal. Even your height and complexion are very similar to his.” Erwin explained, hiding nothing.

“This?”  Levi let out a low, perfectly faked chuckle. “You can say what you want, but I’, actually a fervent admirer of Silverwire, and in fact, am flattered that you think I look like him. I’d never thought about it.” He said quietly, downplaying the subject.

“So that was it!” Erwin threw him an also fake, but more cheerful smile. “And may I know the reason for such admiration is?” He dared to ask.

“Of course you can! But that’s a story for another day.” Levi looked at him with his cold, piercing gaze.

“Understood.” He said, resigned, as he saw the man’s reluctance to continue talking about the topic. “I appreciate the help you give to the department so much, it’s very valuable to us.”

“Don’t mention it!” He waved his hand in dismissal. “And please, don’t think I’m so formal, I just do what I can to support the justice system.”

“Even so, I want to thank you for your support.” Erwin insisted.

“If that’s how it is, then thank me by letting me buy you a drink. That way we can continue where we left off.”

  Erwin looked at him, trying to decipher something in that immutable expression; he considered it, and finally accepted.

“Of course! It would be a pleasure.”

“Perfect. Next Tuesday?” Levi suggested, not wasting any time.

“Sounds good to me.” The men exchanged business cards and Levi told him he’d send his driver to pick him up wherever he chose. “Until Tuesday, mister Ackerman.”

“See you then, and please, call me Levi.” They shook hands again, softer this time. Their eyes connected for a few seconds, grey eyes devouring their blue counterpart for a few seconds, causing another thrill. There was something in that man that extremely attracted him and also seemed suspicious; so Erwin had made up his mind, he would find out more about the man and figure out if he had hidden intentions.

  Levi near-dragged Hanji out of there, the woman animatedly talking to a group of people, and drinking glass after glass of wine, which meant she was getting “happier” than usual.

“What are you doing? I don’t want to leave yet!” She complained as she was pulled toward the exit.

“I fulfilled my task, we have nothing left to do here.” Levi replied sharply.

“Ooohh, I see. So you’ve got something up your sleeve? I’m dying to know your plan!” Her smile widened.

“The details are none of your business, four-eyes!”

   Levi left on his limousine, very satisfied with what he accomplished that night. He was certain that if he “befriended” that man, he’d get an advantage, and it was a way to ensure that he wouldn’t have a chance to catch Silverwire. Having infiltrated agents within the police ranks was no longer enough. Erwin was completely different to the previous chiefs, and he could catch him in the future and, as much as he hated to admit it, it was all exciting to him.

  At the ball, Erwin had been approached by Eren, who dragged his sister and best friend behind him. The young man looked quite dashing in his tuxedo, and his superior started to fancy a second round of what they’d done that afternoon. Nonetheless, he pushed those thoughts away and quietly chatted with his subordinates, despite his mind being occupied by his new acquaintance, and his odd likeness to whom he wished to imprison more than anything else. Besides, he wondered what he could gain from that whole situation.

 

To be continued...

 


	4. Past, present and future Part I

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please go to my profile and read the short one shot called “Oh the irony” this one is about how Erwin and Eren met on this fic. It was an story I wrote for a facebook contest some time ago, and it’s chronologically located just before this chapter.

 

 

**Chapter 4: Past, Present and Future, Part I**

 

“Will you tell me your story, Christa?” The brunette asked the blonde, once it was clear they would not be able to fall asleep that night.

“I will, it doesn’t matter, we’re never getting out of here.” Resigned and trying to hold back her tears, the Young woman sat on the floor of that filthy room, rearranging the blankets that served as a makeshift bed for both of them.

  Ymir sat next to Christa and put her arm around her shoulders, the gesture showing her support, although it did not do much, seeing as they were in the same situation and failed to see a way out. It had been a while since they accepted their terrible faith; an even longer one for Ymir, who had been there for a few years. Seeing her friend’s precarious situation, it did not take long for Christa to see that the same fate awaited her, despite having only been there for a couple of months.

  Both women lived in a small room of what appeared to be a motel, used as a brothel. Both had been tricked, kidnapped and forced to work as prostitutes. There were other young women to to whom this had also happened. The treatment they received was inhumane: they ate once a day and always remained in locked up in the room, with no beds or other amenities, and washing up was reserved for when they had clients to attend to.

“Ymir, I-I really …” The blonde started but was interrupted by the sound of keys in the lock. A tall, unkempt man entered; he approached the women and roughly took Christa by the arm.

“You have work, you better clean up. You disgust me!” The man nearly dragged the blonde, while she tried not to cry. When she saw this, Ymir stood up and seized the man by the other arm.

“Let me take her place! Please.” She begged. The man’s face became a moue of revulsion and indignation. He shook her off with a slap, the strength of the blow, coupled with her weakness due to malnourishment, managing to drop her on the ground.

“I’ve told you to not touch me with your dirty hands or talk to me.” He snarled. “You think the client wants a disgusting old whore like you? Don’t make me laugh!” He mocked, his expression shifted before he spat on Ymir’s face, pulling Christa out of the room and leaving her on the floor, near tears; but she did not cry out of sadness, rather frustration, impotence and stress, at not being able to protect the woman she loved.

   The pimp took Christa to another room, which served as bathroom, quickly stripped her and started hosing her down; the girl cried because the cold, pressurized water hurt her. Next, he threw her a towel and told her to dry off while he found her a change of clothes. He returned and handed her a pink bra with sequins and matching bottoms, which left nothing to the imagination, as the fabric was translucent, but still created an illusion of covering her body.

  The blond was pushed to another room, this time one of the many numbered bedrooms, with tasteless, cheap decor. From the furniture that filled the space, since the only thing they needed was a bed, to the sheets, carpets and drapes; they screamed “ordinary, low and cheap”. It was by no means high-end brothel, but the earnings were enough and the clients abundant.

  Inside the room was an older man who could have been in his fifties. The man looked rather dirty and disheveled; his shirt was stained with unknown substances, likely his dinner, and it also had sweat stains around his armpits, chest and back. What topped off the unpleasant ensemble was the man’s obesity, evident in his swollen stomach, which protruded from under his shirt and above his pants, and was covered in hair. Once she laid eyes upon him, Christa wanted to cry once more, but had to hold back, aware of the cruel punishments that would befall her if she failed to perform her duties correctly.

“All yours! Enjoy!” the pimp remarked, leaving her in that room with the filthy being who she was to sate sexually.

“Hey, baby. We’re gonna have a lot of fun today.” His lustful and repulsive eyes looked at the young woman up and down, inspecting her appearance, the man even began salivating. “I hope you know how to suck it good.” Christa could only stare, terrified and disgusted at the vision before her, and resign herself to what awaited her that night.

  Ymir, in the room where she remained, kept crying, knowing the atrocities Christa must be facing. After all, she had gone through them countless times during the previous years.

  The woman had never had a good life after all. She never knew her parents, having been abandoned at an orphanage as a baby. The place was located in the slums of that city, and thus was not the best place to grow up; it was run by people who did not care in the least about the welfare of the children in their custody. They lived off donations that were definitely used for their personal gain and whatever was left, then went on to supporting their charges.

  Ymir got used to living without love, food or comforts, as did all the children she grew up with, she never knew what happiness was. When she reached her teens, she was thrown out because it was too expensive to keep, according to the orphanage owners. So, left to her own devices, the girl roamed the city streets, living off handouts or stealing from distracted passersby. Unlike many others, she never used violence to obtain money or food. She walked through life like an empty shell, devoid of feelings, hopes and dreams. For her, life made no sense, and happiness was a privilege reserved for those lucky enough to have been born to a wealthy family.

  She dedicated herself to surviving for many years, until one day she had the misfortune of meeting the owners of the brothel. She was tricked with the promise of a good job and enough income to get off the streets; she was promised a bright future and, since she owned nothing, she believed she had nothing to lose. But the reality was very different from what she had been promised: she was locked up, beaten, and forced into sexual activities with any and all kinds of men, most of them old ones, who had no regard for personal hygiene.

  Condemned to that new life, the young woman lost the only thing she had possessed: freedom. She lost count of the years spent inside, but they must have been three or four up to the moment Christa arrived. The small blond would not stop crying, suffering incessantly day and night; Ymir, who had never felt pity for anybody, note even herself, felt her heart break at seeing the other girl so desperate and sad. In no time, she developed a fondness for her, she tried to console her, which Christa thanked and, sometime later, was able to smile. That smile enthralled Ymir; it was beautiful, bright and made her feel calm. Ymir swore from that moment on, that she would protect Christa and keep that smile forever on her face.

  Nevertheless, the conditions they were in were extremely harsh. There was nothing Ymir could do to keep Christa from being used as a sexual object, and that both frustrated and ate at her, despite having accepted her fate, she wanted to take Christa out of that place by any means necessary.

But… how?

 

* * *

 

  The day on which Erwin had agreed to meet with Levi had arrived. The entrepreneur had told Erwin he would send his chauffeur to pick him up at his apartment and take him to the restaurant Levi had chosen for their dinner. The blond made sure to dress appropriately, he had to make a good impression if he intended to win over that man’s trust and figure out if he really had underlying plans.

  Levi’s driver arrived on time to the given address, Erwin felt slightly uncomfortable sitting in that luxurious car, and considerably more when he had to get off at the restaurant; the driver even held his door open for him. His salary as chief of police was relatively high, but it still did not allow for such indulgence and he did not feel adequate in that situation.

  Levi had picked a very upscale restaurant; Erwin had not been wrong in wearing his best suit. He was lead to a table where Levi awaited. The man rose and extended his hand in greeting, a small smile on his lips.

“I’m glad you came, Erwin.”

“I appreciate the invitation, mister Ackerman.” Erwin smiled kindly and shook his hand.

“Please! Let’s stop with the formalities and call me Levi. ‘Mister Ackerman’ makes me feel like a decrepit old man.” He motioned for Erwin to sit, he complied and sat across from Levi; some minutes later, the waiter approached to welcome them and hand them menus.

“Alright, Levi.” He smiled once more. “To be honest, I feel a little embarrassed to be in such a fancy place, so please forgive me if I don’t behave correctly, I’m not used to this kind of restaurant.” He chuckled.

“Don’t be ridiculous, I think this place suits you perfectly. And please, order whatever you like, tonight is my treat.”

“I can’t accept that!”  He said, alarmed. “It’s enough with all that you’ve helped the department.”

“I insist. Take it as my way to thank you for your company tonight, my work doesn’t allow me to go out frequently or have a lot of friends, so accept or I’ll feel quite offended.”

  It wasn’t in Erwin’s best interest to disappoint Levi, and because he was a strong believer in the end justifying the means, he accepted that man’s offer; he was convinced that he should become closer to him and finally discover what he was about. The prices in that restaurant were very steep, after all, he was dealing with a multimillionaire, so he relaxed and allowed himself to order whatever he wanted.

“If it’s not too much to ask, may I know what exactly it is that your company does?” He ventured the question.

“Ackerman enterprises is pioneer in technology,” Levi began to explain “we have the best scientists, who develop different products, from electronics, house appliances to even medtech, and anything our clients request.” In that moment, the waiter returned with their dishes, so Levi paused, but he paid no mind to his food and continued. “Did you see the news about the donation of X-ray machines to Trost hospitals, the other day?” Erwin nodded, remembering that he’d heard something about that on the news broadcast, some days prior. “Well, those special machines were developed by our company and we donated some to that hospital, which is in a lower-class district.”  Levi looked almost bored with his explanation, at no time did he seem to be boasting about what he was saying.

  After hearing all of that, Erwin wondered if he was misjudging him, and he was just a millionaire that had nothing else to spend his fortune on, and thus donated it. He thought that maybe he rushed to form an opinion on him. Immediately his tension released, and he decided to stop being on the defensive, perhaps he could become that man’s friend and could even be more useful to the police department in the future.

“That’s impressive. I’m glad to know there are people like you who care about helping those in need and contribute to the development of the city.” He complimented, smiling genuinely.

“Don’t say that, I’m just fulfilling my duty as citizen, it’s the least I can do.” This time the dark-haired man began to dig in, and motioned for Erwin to do the same. Both dined quietly, with an occasional interjection about nothing too relevant. Finally, Levi insisted on getting dessert and Erwin, once more, could not deny him.

  Minutes later, the waiter returned with two slices of chocolate cake. This time, the blond made sure to order the simplest thing on the menu but, unfortunately, the moment he was about to put down Erwin’s plate, he accidentally dropped the cake on his lap.

“Could you be any more useless?! Look what you’ve done! Do they not teach you something as simple as serving a plate in a place like this?” Erwin watched, astonished, how the man’s calm demeanor shifted in a seconds; like if he were a different person, he spoke cruelly to the waiter, who was bright red and had not stopped apologizing. “Quit crying and hurry up to clean this mess!” he continued reprimanding.

“Levi, I don’t think it’s necessary for you to get this worked up.” Erwin tried to calm him, as he cleaned himself up with a napkin. The shorter man returned to his usual mood after a while, and asked the waiter for the bill, not without taking the opportunity to mention, once more and in the politest way he could, how inept he was.

“I’m sorry you had to see that.” Levi apologized, “It hasn’t been the best day and I hoped everything would be perfect today, but that… waiter, ruined everything.”

“Not at all, the food and company were excellent.” Erwin graced him with a warm smile, showing that he meant what he had said.

“I’m happy to hear that. But…” this time, Levi looked into his eyes, making Erwin tremble a little, he couldn’t help but remember Silverwire each time the man looked at him so deeply. “…I think I still owe you some answers, from the day I had the pleasure to meet you.”

“You’re right, and I admit that our conversation was so pleasant that I completely forgot.” Erwin laughed lowly.

“In that case, is it alright if we continue this at my house? I’m sure we’ll be more comfortable in an idiot-free environment.” He said it with such a serious tone that Erwin couldn’t help but cackle at the comment, Levi seemed really bothered by the accident.

“Sounds good. I’ll accompany you for a while longer, if you’ll let me.” He agreed with no hesitation. Levi called his driver, who immediately picked them up and took them to Levi’s home.

  Like any cliché millionaire, Levi’s residence was an enormous mansion, with a lot more rooms than he would need in several life times. And he seemed to live on his own, in that sprawling place, only accompanied by the help and maintenance personnel. The place looked relatively ‘normal’, or at least lacking eccentric decor, which Erwin thought he would find there; instead, it looked ordinary, ignoring the fact that everything was top of the line, that is.

  Levi guided Erwin to a study room, and told him to take a seat at the minibar, so he could pour him a drink. As he passed a side table next to one of the couches in the center of the room, the blond noted a thick volume, which he lifted to read what it was, curious to know what kind of reader Ackerman would be.

“The Count of Monte Cristo?” He said, mostly to himself.

“Have you read it?” The businessman inquired, but did not give enough time for his counterpart to reply. “A story about betrayal and a man who came back from hell itself to get revenge and justice.” He explained.

“Interesting reading material, I see. Any reason in particular for this type of literature?”

“Of course! It’s most interesting and the plot is exquisite, if you’re interested, I could have a copy delivered to you.” He offered.

“That’s very kind of you, but maybe some other time.” Erwin finally replaced the book and sat down. Levi offered him different liquors, the blond accepted a glass of whiskey. Levi poured it and, when he handed him the glass, their hands touched for an instant, and both men looked at the other reflexively; they separated their hands slowly, like nothing happened, but they held each other’s gaze: platinum trying to devour sky blue, and vice versa. There was something in Erwin that exceedingly attracted Levi to him, and there was something in Levi that captivated Erwin.

“Thanks for the drink.” Erwin was the first to break the silence and eye contact. “So, will you tell me why you admire Silverwire so much?” He questioned and took a sip of his drink.

“That’s something you already know,” the man sat next to Erwin, grabbing the glass of red wine and taking a sip before continuing “Silverwire is a hero who puts criminals in their place, besides, I’ve witnessed some of his feats. He’s become very popular lately, and any common citizen like me ends up becoming a fan.” That explanation did not quite convince Erwin, much less with the tone and disinterested look his counterpart showed.

“I see. But then, if you’re such an admirer of Silverwire, why the donations to the department? I think it’s pretty contradictory.”

“You’re wrong, Erwin,” he laughed a little, showing his pearly whites for an instant “I’m not against any side, only in favor of justice. In fact, I’ve always found myself attracted by the strict sense of justice this city’s police has, therefore for many years I’ve closely followed the accomplishments of the previous chiefs, and…” he shortened the distance between himself and the blond, staring deeply into the other’s eyes. “…of course I follow the new one very closely. Call it a hobby, if you like.” The shorter man’s proximity and eyes that seemed to be poking inside of him, caused a shiver to run down Erwin’s back, he  and cleared his throat, watching how Levi returned to his original position to take another drink of his wine.

“Oh, really? And what kind of accomplishments are we talking about?” He followed along, somewhat interested in the topic.

“You could say I collect information about crimes, news… nothing interesting, but without realizing it, I gathered a good amount of data.” Once again, Levi spoke as if it was the most boring subject in the world.

“It actually sounds very interesting,” he smiled kindly “a very peculiar hobby, if you ask me.”

“If you want, I can show you my collection, though it will be very boring for the chief of police, I’m sure you’ve studied hundreds of cases in the past.”

“There’s always something new to be learned, I’d love to see what you have.”

“Very well, I’ll show you, then…” as he spoke those words, Levi smirked, and Erwin could not decipher if he was excited, happy, or just being nice. Maybe none of those and he was only being hypocritical, but that man was too difficult to read; an enigma for the officer. “…please, follow me.”

  Both men rose, Levi lead Erwin through the halls of the mansion, turning to look at him every once in a while, and offering him slight smiles each time. At last, they stopped in front of a locked door and the shorter man fished for his keys to enter.

  The room was covered in newspaper clippings, online articles, photos, and even several whiteboards with notes and maps on them. Levi motioned for his guest to look as much as he wanted. Erwin walked around the room, checking some of the news articles, he stopped when something piqued his interest, but it was information available to the public and nothing particularly useful.

“It’s a very complete collection, Levi.”

“I appreciate the compliment…” What Erwin did not know was that all of it was a front for the actual classified information the millionaire possessed, provided by his infiltrated collaborators in the department, or stolen via Isabel and Farlan’s cyber-attacks to police files. Levi would definitely not grant Erwin access to his private database. “…but I warned you it’d be boring.” He let out a little laugh.

“Not at all! The way the information is categorized is truly admirable.”

“Please, don’t make me blush.” Levi joked and the blond returned his smile.

  Erwin thought that it would certainly be useful to establish a friendship with that particular character; it would Benefit him immensely to have a person that interested in getting justice, and who also possessed so much money, he thought the moment would probably arrive, in which he could use his influence, contacts or fortune, at the department’s convenience, that was, of course, if he played his cards right.

  Additionally, there was that unusual attraction he felt. The man was a puzzle; he could sense there was something he was hiding, despite having no proof whatsoever. That aside, he had to admit he was very good looking, and his attraction towards him was unlike the one towards Eren, with whom he only wished to go to bed and have a good time; rather, he figured that having sex with Levi could be a true experience, like a work of art, if he was to compare it with something. The man was so mysterious and surrounded by this enticing aura, that was awfully hard to resist. And even if Erwin refused to accept it, what had first drawn him to Levi, and what continued pushing him to become closer to him, was his resemblance to Silverwire.

  To the blond, it was absurd to think that there were similarities between those two, seeing as Silverwire had never shown a part of his body besides, and he did not know what his real voice sounded like. But the height was very close, and that look; now, it was true that there could be many people with the same eye color, despite grey being rare, but that gaze that appeared to be looking into your soul made him think that both men had to be connected somehow. And the idea that it was all a product of his imagination and only showed his obsession to get Silverwire to Levi, also terrified him, thanks to the impact the man caused on him, the first time he saw him, with the criminal’s mask as costume.

  And Erwin bet more on that option, he knew his desire to catch that delinquent had surpassed the professional, but he could not admit it to anyone else, and he tried to deny it to himself, even so, he could not avoid externalizing his feelings. “I’ll definitely catch Silverwire one day!” he exclaimed when he saw a picture of the famous hero on one of the walls, between other news. “And then you’ll have that article framed in a special place amongst your collection.” He smiled widely.

  Levi doubted for a second, he could not interpret those statements as a threat or a simple, offhand comment. What was very clear to him was that the man was obsessed with him, and that he would do anything to catch him. Ackerman smiled genuinely and with malice, it was an interesting game and the scale was tipped to his favor, being that, if Erwin did not suspect him, the good friend façade would serve his plans going forward.

“I find myself with mixed emotions. I’ll support you, but I also don’t like the idea of my favorite hero getting locked up.” He said almost in jest.

  Before Erwin could respond, his phone started ringing, he excused himself and went out to the hall to answer it. He returned after a few minutes, looking serious.

“Levi, I’m so sorry, but I have to go. I just got a call from the office.” He explained.

“Don’t worry, I understand. Though it must be hard, since you’d finished your workday just a few hours ago.”

“I’ve just been told about an emergency and it can’t wait until tomorrow. Thank you for your hospitality, it was a very interesting evening and I hope we can see each other again sometime.”

“You don’t have to thank me, it’s me who’s grateful for your company. And please let my driver take you to the police department.” The men shook hands goodbye and when Erwin had left, Levi got out his phone and dialed.

“Petra, what’s the emergency?”

_“Ah, mister Ackerman! You see, a girl just arrived at the station, she’s very dirty and malnourished and she’s come in making a big scene, she’s in the middle of a nervous breakdown or something of the like.”_

“And where is the emergency in all of that? So much fuss over a filthy homeless woman?”

_“Apparently, she just escaped a brothel where she’d been kept for years and she’s begging us to rescue her friend.”_

 Listening to those declarations caused a huge impact on Levi, so much so that he fell silent for a few moments and only spoke when Petra called his name, because she hadn’t received a reply.

“I need you to keep me informed of everything that woman says. Especially if she gives the address of the place.” He instructed.

_“Understood! Please wait for my next call, we’re just waiting for the chief to arrive to move on to the interrogation and taking the official statements.”_

“Good.” Levi hung up and quickly went to another room in the mansion, which was under lock and key, and the servants were under strict instruction not to enter any of the locked rooms in the house. In said room, Levi kept his Silverwire suits and 3D maneuvering gear.

  Impatient, he sat down to wait for Petra’s call; he had to know that place’s address and get there fast. He needed to destroy every bone in the bodies of the pigs who ran that filthy establishment and free the poor victims. He could almost feel his blades slicing into the flesh of those sick bastards who dared profit from the integrity and dignity of the women.

  Although he did not admit it to himself, Ackerman had an underlying personal motive, and that made his anger flare up, and the desire to maim and kill increase every second he waited.

 

To be continued…

 


	5. Past, present and future.  Part II

 

  Levi’s chauffeur quickly took Erwin to the police department, where they were already waiting for him.

“Chief, here’s the report, the girl is with Armin in the interrogation room.” Mikasa indicated, handing him a folder with the status report, and walking him to the place. Erwin first looked through the two-way mirror on the other side of the wall.

  There was a young woman in her late twenties, brunette, freckled and very thin; the desperation was clear on her face. Being a psychologist, Armin was tasked with calming her while Erwin arrived to proceed with the questioning.

  The blond skimmed over the report, and entered the room. He sat next to Armin, looking at the girl with a kind expression on his face.

“Good evening, my name’s Erwin Smith, I’m the department chief and if you don’t mind, I’d like for you to answer some questions.”

“We’re wasting time here. Idiots! You need to rescue her, you need to get her out of there now!” The brunette shouted, lacking all manners and politeness, she was on the verge of tears.

“Rescue her?” Erwin asked. “Young lady, I need you to cooperate with me, or I’ll be forced to take you out of here,” he threatened seriously “help us help you.”

“What the hell do you need to know?” Exasperated but resigned, she decided that the fastest way to get help was to cooperate and answer their questions.

“I need you to start from the beginning: who are you? Why are you here? Who do we need to rescue?”

“Don’t you have the fucking report?! Can’t you read? If you’re gonna waste my time and not help me, I’ll go by myself.” The woman rose from her seat, ready to leave the precinct.

“Ymir!” Armin called out, which made the girl stop. “The report we gave the boss is incomplete because we haven’t been able to fully understand the situation. We’d appreciate it if you explained everything in detail, so we can proceed with a plan.” The younger blond patiently explained.

 Fortunately, officer Arlert’s power of speech and conviction were fairly effective and useful in that kind of situation. Ymir sat back down and sighed before she began telling her story. Erwin and his subordinate listened attentively to every detail the girl narrated and, on the other side of the glass, Mikasa kept taking notes for the report.

“I see…” Erwin said, pensively, evoking memories from similar situations he had had to go through or had read about “…you still haven’t told us who you meant when you asked us to ‘rescue her’.” He inquired again, curious.

“I was getting to that! You have to rescue Christa, she stayed there, I couldn’t bring her with me.” The young woman clenched her fists in frustration and impotence, once more, tears threatened to fall.

“Christa? I’m guessing she went through the same ordeal as you.” This time it was Armin who interjected.

“No! She’s different…” she uttered, face downcast.

“Explain.”

* * *

 

  Christa Renz, or rather, Historia Reiss; was the daughter of Sina’s senator. The young woman had been reported missing several months before. By that point, the police had exhausted every lead that might help find her. Everything suggested that she had left home out of her own volition, because, after all that time, no one had showed up asking for a ransom, in case she had been abducted.

  The enquiry remained opened, but their efforts to find her were minimal. The senator, who had lost all his family in an accident, was devastated by the loss of his only living daughter; who, it was worth noting, was the illegitimate child of Rod Reiss and his lover. After losing his entire family, for fear of being alone and without a legacy, he went to Historia’s house, where she lived with her grandparents, to convince her to live with him.

  It was all a big scandal, but the senator’s money, was enough to buy the media and make the public buy that Historia had lived in a boarding school in another country, studying at one of the most prestigious academies but that upon the death of her family, she had chosen to return to live with her father.

   But even all the money did not help him find his daughter’s whereabouts. It was as if the earth had opened up and swallowed her. She disappeared and left no trace. Rod did not think that the girl had run away with a lover because as far as he knew, she had never shown interest in anybody.

  However, the version of the facts he had given to the police was not too far from the truth; Historia had suffered greatly throughout her life. Her mother never loved her and refused to take care of her; apparently, the woman had suffered major psychological trauma when she became pregnant with her lover’s baby. Thus, Historia was raised by her humble grandparents. Though they never showed her affection either. They simply took her in because they had no choice, and the money they received from the senator for being her guardians, which suited them perfectly, as they were not wealthy.

  Years later, in her teens, Historia’s mother was murdered by a group of intolerant people, who accused the woman of being crazy due to her mental condition. She was attacked and tortured as a joke (at least, they considered it a game) until everything went south and the prank became a tragedy. Historia witnessed what happened, and while her mother had never shown her affection, she could not help but feel devastated for her loss.

  Shortly afterwards, the girl was taken in by her father, whom she did not know. On one hand, she felt glad knowing there was a relative who cared about her and maybe even loved her. Nevertheless, she once happened to overhear a conversation between her father and his assistant, whom he told that he lacked affection for his daughter, and that his only interest lay in keeping his social status, and a family man would always be more popular than a single, childless one; more so, selling the image of a devastated father who had lost his entire family, save for his precious and beloved daughter.

  The blonde had no one in the world who loved her, she had no friends, her grandparents never wanted her and, at that point, she could not return to them. Tired of so much suffering, the girl opted for reaming the streets whenever she had the chance. Knowing the city was vital if she wanted to get out of her current situation, perhaps finding a job with which to provide for herself and thus leave behind the man who called himself her father.

  Having made that choice, the young woman dedicated herself to explore every place she could, she also looked for work at several places, with no success. One day, Historia had ventured into a rather rough part of town; but she had no idea where she was going. Tired of walking for so long, she sat on a bench in a small park.

  Moments afterward, she was approached by a strange man, who smiled excessively. The man introduced himself as a scout, explaining that upon seeing her, he immediately knew she was destined for greatness and offered to help her kickstart her career as a model, due to her beauty and physical qualities. The stranger, with his silver tongue, sold her on the idea that a world of possibilities and success awaited her; lastly, he handed her a paper with an address written on it, and invited her there whenever she liked.

   Historia considered it for an entire week, but in the end decided that the best thing for her would be to walk away from her father, and the opportunity she was being offered turned out to be perfect. She did not have a lot of schooling, so she thought that entering the world of modeling would give her the necessary resources to study something she could keep living off. And so, a few days later, she left her house to the address she was given. It was difficult to reach, and she could not help but notice that every time she stopped for directions, she was going deeper, and deeper into places that did not seem safe.

  Finally, she arrived at a large, old-looking house, rand the bell and was greeted after a moment.

“Darling! We’ve been expecting you!” Exclaimed middle-aged woman, she was overweight and her hair was matted; she invited her inside. Historia, not overly trusting because of the woman’s appearance, entered and was showed to a small living room where, minutes after, the man she had previously met showed up.

“So, you decided to come. You have no idea what awaits you!” the man declared, smiling wickedly and licking his lips in a vulgar manner. Next thing she knew, she was being locked in a room for the rest of the day, without food or water, and being ignored despite her shouts and pleas.

  She spent several days trapped, not knowing what had happened. The door opened twice per day, when they brought her unpleasant food which she was forced to eat out of necessity. Her misery, far from over, was only beginning. After a few days, the man returned and explained, between cynical laughs, that she had been completely fooled and scammed by them.

“You naive bitch!” He spat, cackling, before revealing that she was in a brothel and now part of the business and his property, as her captor informed her. She could not escape and would be bound to prostitute herself, or face the consequences.

   The man did not wait and proceeded to undress her because, according to him, he should verify the quality of the product before presenting it to any client.

“With your face I’d never imagined you were a virgin.” He mocked, committing the foul act. Devastated, Historia, cried herself to sleep; following more days of solitary confinement, and a repeat of the same act by her captor, over and over, she was taken to another room, where she met Ymir, who explained how it all worked in that putrid place, full of soulless criminals.

  Just a few weeks from Historia’s unfortunate arrival to that place, she was “ready to make her debut” as the owner of the brothel so put it, and that was the beginning of endless days of agony, which were occasionally appeased by the fact that she shared the same burden with Ymir, who she quickly became fond of.

   Only one of such days, when she had already resigned herself to living that way, until her youth and beauty flickered out and she was no longer useful, she did not know how, but Ymir had escaped, leaving her a message with one of the other girls. _“Don’t worry, I’ll get you out of here as soon as I can, trust me and don’t lose hope. I love you”_ were the exact words from her.

 

* * *

 

 

 “Ymir, we know of someone who matches the description of the woman you mentioned, but the names are different.” The chief communicated, as soon as he heard Ymir’s information about what Christa looked like and how long she had been there. Though she could not give more details than that, because the blonde had never found the courage to tell her about her real identity.

  Mikasa, who was in the next room listening and taking notes the entire time, knew immediately who Erwin meant, and ran for the Historia Reiss case file, which she brought quickly and gave to her superior.

“Is this girl the same one you’re talking about?” Erwin asked again, handing her a photograph.

“Yes! It’s her!”

 “Ymir, I’m afraid the person you know is no other than the senator’s missing daughter: Historia Reiss.” the blond informed.

“What? Someone that important?” The woman was a lot calmer and even pensive after hearing the truth. She had tried many times to get Christa to tell her where she came from; all she knew was that she was not from the streets, like herself. But the blonde never wanted to, always evading the question and when she was finally convinced to tell, they were interrupted, like the day Ymir escaped. At last she found out and, knowing she was a person of such relevance to the city, only made her want to rescue her more fiercely.

“Ymir, now we need you to please tell us how to get to that place.” The Captain requested, “Also, keep in mind that we can’t go right away, we need to have a good action plan or everything could go wrong, and we don’t want anything to happen to Historia or any of the other women.”

  Next, the woman proceeded to give them details of the place she escaped. It was not so easy for her to give an address, due to her lack of education, but she knew the streets like the palm of her hand; everything she said was compiled on a report by Mikasa and subsequently given to Petra for filing.

 

* * *

 

  From the moment Erwin left his house and he heard about the new case, Levi was restless, waiting for a call from Petra, with more information on how to find the place. The man, in his desperation, began cleaning the leaves of a plant that decorated the room one by one. Cleaning always helped him calm down, though in that moment it was not working; every minute that went by he became tenser.

  All that impatience was due to Ackerman’s past. He had not always been a millionaire, he did not come from money, the business had not been inherited from past generations. The exact opposite was true, Levi had grown up in the lowest, most dangerous neighborhoods in Sina, his mother Kuchel had been one of those young girls, from low-income homes, tricked into prostitution. Finally, when she was not so young anymore, she was freed from captivity. But after so many years, she discovered there was no other way for her, she did not know how to fend for herself as she had spent many years imprisoned.

  Kuchel had an older brother: Kenny Ackerman. Since her disappearance, she had not been seen again, until one day, Kenny was walking through the streets she used to work on. The man had joined a band, and heard from his sources that his sister had been sighted near that area, so he decided to look for her, finding her at long last.

   By that time, Kuchel had been impregnated by one of her clients. Her brother tried to convince her not to have the child, there was no way a woman like her could take care of one. But she flatly refused, so Kenny decided to stop seeing her. She had her son and raised him with all the love a mother could give, they lived in a room at the brothel, so Levi grew up surrounded by all kinds of atrocities, bearing witness to the rot of humanity. Even so, he loved his mother.

 When Levi was eight years old, her mother contracted a venereal disease from one of her clients and became bedridden. The news reached Kenny and he decided to visit her again. Though by the time he got there, it was too late; on the bed in that grimy room, lay the emaciated corpse had once been his younger sister. At first, Kenny thought she was asleep and her deplorable appearance was due to her being sick, but a high voice spoke from the dark corner of the room:

“She’s already dead.”

  Kenny immediately turned to the source of the voice, finding a small, ragged boy, nearly as malnourished as his late sister. He was his nephew and just from one look, he could tell no one had taken care of him in a long time; he probably had not been fed, only standing watch by his mother and awaiting the same fate to reach him.

“What’s your name?” The man asked, as nicely as he could.

“Levi, just Levi.” The child replied weakly.

  From that moment on, Kenny looked after the child, but he never revealed his relationship with Kuchel.

   In the midst of his despair, the businessman remembered his mother. He could evoke her face vividly, as if she were there, smiling at him, caring for him. He wondered what would have been of his mother if she had not died from that disease. She would probably be enjoying her only son’s fortune. Or, perhaps if she had not died, Levi would have grown to be another delinquent and his mother would have continued in prostitution until her age allowed, ending up homeless.

  There were many scenarios but the reality was that, despite everything, Levi loved his mother, the little time he could share with her, and would have given up all of his fortune for things to be different and her to still be alive. But because that was impossible, he would at least try to contribute so that other people did not have her same fate. As Silverwire, he could punish all those like the wretched people who ruined his mother’s life and his own childhood.

  At last his phone rang and he swiftly answered the call.

 “Do you have the address, Petra?”

“Yes, the report was delivered, it’ll take me a few minutes to scan it and sent it over.”

“Great work! And the police?”

“Right now, Chief Erwin is planning the strategy with the team, I don’t know the details, but I’ll tell Erd to let you know when they’re done.”

“Very well, I’ll wait for your email, then.” More waiting and in a few minutes, he could unleash his ire or at least, that’s what he would like to think; despite being angry, he would not let that blind him. He would not storm the place when he got the information, he had to wait for the police’s plan or he would risk being caught by the blond.

  Minutes after, he got Petra’s message in his inbox, and promptly began reading the report, assessing the situation. Having lived on the streets for so long, the address was familiar, he knew how to get there and could have gone that very moment if he wanted to, but reminded himself to keep calm and wait for the police’s plan to identify the best course of action.

  Later that night, Erd called him with a detailed explanation of Erwin’s plan. They would wait until the next morning to go, in order to have more chances of catching all the pimps together. They would have enough units to surround the house and avoid runaways, they would break in and identify the victims for extraction, while the rest of the officers apprehended the owners of the brothel. Simple and quick.

“Very much your style, chief.” Levi murmured, rehashing the plan after he hung up. He decided to wait until dawn, at night there were too many people and the women would probably be working, so it was not a good idea to attack then. If he arrived at dawn, though, he would be there before the police; when they did, they would find the mutilated bodies alone.

“I’m so sorry, Erwin, but those bastards are mine.”

  Because there were still some hours to go, Ackerman decided to sleep; he figured he should rest a little for arduous work awaited him. He fell asleep easily, due to his mental fatigue, but he did not get to rest much, for the memories of his mother and his childhood tormented him in his dreams.

 

* * *

 

 

  That very night, following the commotion of Ymir’s arrival, Erwin invited Eren to his apartment once again. It was the first time since they began their “relationship”, that they left directly from work, so it was strange, for the officers that saw them, that the chief was taking Eren in his car.

  Mikasa and Armin, who were clueless about the whole situation, where the most baffled.

“You saw the same thing I just did, right, Mikasa?” The blond asked his friend, wishing that his eyes had tricked him, but knowing well that there was nothing wrong with his eyesight.

“Yes, and I don’t like it at all.” The young woman expressed, frowning while she stared at the road her superior had taken.

“I feel the same way. I just hope Eren knows what he’s doing, I wouldn’t want to see him suffering again. Whatever he’s doing with the boss, it’s too risky; I don’t think it’s good for either of them…” he remarked, concerned “…also, I don’t think the boss is serious about him.”

“That idiot!” was all she replied, furious but also worried for her brother. She knew how bad his past relationships had been and with how overprotective she was, the last thing she wanted was for Eren to go through a similar or worse experience.

“Mikasa, please try to stay calm when you talk to him about it. You know that if you’re angry when you do, Eren will get defensive and not listen.” The blond advised; he knew his friends very well, and reprimanding Eren would not be the best way to make him see reason.

“I don’t even know why I bother. Eren’s an adult and should know what he’s doing,” but, deep down, she was worried, and anger was her way of showing it.

  Uncaring of who saw, Erwin and Eren quickly left the station, for one of their encounters. The flesh demanded it, and it was also a good therapy to prepare them for what awaited the next day. It was going to be a fairly tiring and stressful day, so they might as well arrive relaxed.

“Would you like to eat something, Eren? I already had dinner but if you’re hungry, I can make you something.” The blond offered amiably as they entered the apartment.

“Yeah, I want to eat something…” the green-eyed man approached him with a lustful gaze, when he reached him, he put his arms around his neck to draw Erwin closer and bite his chin lightly. “...but this dish I have to make myself.”

  Erwin chuckled and lowered himself slightly, running his hands behind the officer’s thighs to pick him up; understanding Erwin’s intentions, Eren immediately wrapped his legs around his middle while holding onto his shoulders. Erwin proceeded to scatter small bites and licks down the younger man’s neck, as he walked them to the guest room.

  Once there, he softly lay Eren on the bed, moving his focus from Eren’s neck to his chest as he unbuttoned the man’s shirt. Then the younger man cupped his face and tilted it up, forcing him to look.

“I think I said that this time, I’ll make the food.” Eren said.

“Alright, alright…” the blond lay back on the bed, spreading out his arms “I’m all yours, let’s see how good a chef you are.” He smiled flirtatiously.

  Eren sat on the blond, straddling his stomach while nimbly undoing his shirt. Imitating the caresses he had received earlier, he began kissing and biting and licking his way down the older man’s chest …

  After finishing, and showering, Erwin took Eren home and told him to sleep some because in a few hours, they had to report for duty. That was the life of a police officer in Sina City.

 

To be continued….

 


	6. Past, present and future.  Part III

**Chapter 5: Past, present and future.**

**Part III**

 

   It was around four in the morning when Erwin’s cell phone began to ring. Only a few hours since he had managed to fall asleep but, with some effort, he answered the call. As a member (and chief) of the police, it was his duty to be available 24/7.

“What’s going on?” he asked, in a low voice, letting out a yawn. “What? No way… call all the units involved in the op; we’ll rendezvous immediately.”

   He had been informed that Silverwire was at the crime scene at that very moment. Apparently, Ymir, who had not been too convinced, went back to the brothel to keep watch from afar, and spotted the masked figure perched on the roof of the old house.

  The woman climbed up as quickly as she could to face him.

“Hey! Who are you and what are you doing here? You’re interfering!” She spoke firmly but tried not to yell and tip off the people inside the house.

“You are interfering, brat. You should go now, because blood will be spilled tonight.” The superhero warned.

  At once, Ymir threw herself at the man. She thought he could not be very strong because of his size, but it was the exact opposite. With a swift move, he took her down and placed his foot on the woman’s back.

“I’m giving you the chance to save your life, but if you’re on their side, I won’t hesitate to slice your throat.” The robotic voice threatened, while his foot pressed down.

“What makes you think I’m with those bastards? I’ll leave, so let go of me already!” Despite her character, the young woman wasn’t stupid; she knew she had no chance against that strange figure. So once the man let up, she ran to the first payphone available and called the police. The department immediately assumed that it was Silverwire, because of her description; he was unmistakable.

   Erwin had designated a nearby vacant lot as the meeting place. Him and the officers already on the case rushed to the site.

“We have to hurry! I have no idea how that guy got access to the report so fast. But as we speak, he’s doing whatever he wants in there…” he told his subordinates, “…we’ll go in now and follow the plan as we discussed. Regarding Silverwire…”

“Boss?” one of the officers asked, noting the pause.

“…if you find him, don’t engage, inform me and I’ll take care of it” was his final order.

  Following the chief’s orders, all units went to the scene. Meanwhile, Silverwire had entered the premises and was slowly inspecting his surroundings, so as to avoid mistakes. Agile like a cat, he moved around quietly. Most of the doors he tried were either locked or empty, so the little patience he had left vanished and he decided to take down the next locked door he encountered. After all, if he did not find anyone, he was sure the noise would attract his prey’s attention and that would be his chance to strike.

  He found another closed door and kicked it down easily. He then walked inside and found a couple of women, holding onto one another and trembling in fear at the sudden violence.

“Who are you?” One of them, a short, blonde woman, asked. She looked gaunt and unkempt.

“I’m the one who came to take you out of this sty. So, you better cooperate,” he threatened. “Now, tell me where are the pieces of shit that have locked you up here? Apparently, those pigs are asleep, because not even the noise has woken them.”

“Th-they sleep in the first room on the right, on the ground floor.” She confirmed.

“Good, listen closely: whatever you hear down there, don’t leave this room until someone comes to get you.” He warned.

“B-but…”

“I said, understood?” He said, which scared the women again, and they could only nod. “Good.” Silverwire walked down the stairs as the woman had said, quickly finding the room she had indicated. He did not stall, for he had waited long enough; thoughts of his mother invaded his mind and the thirst for vengeance drowned him. From one kick, even stronger than the previous ones, he tore the door from its hinges.

“What the fuck?!” shouted the man who had previously been sleeping; his wife, on the other hand, shrieked and pulled the covers up to her chin.

“Well, well, well. So, I finally find you.” Silverwire commented in a sarcastic tone as he walked into the room.

“Who the fuck are you and how dare you come into my house?” The pimp shouted, vibrating with rage.

“Me? I’m nobody important…” The masked man paced the bedroom, while the criminal glared at him, irate, and his wife was on the verge of collapsing from shock. “…just the one who’s gonna erase your disgusting existence from this Earth and send you straight to where you belong.” He finished.

“What are you talking about? Don’t try to make me laugh! With your ridiculous suit, playing the big hero…” he mocked, “you’re nothing but a weak midget.”

“I don’t need to waste any more time with trash like you.” Before his opponent had time to reply, Silverwire jumped onto the bed next, to the scared woman. “And don’t even think I’ll have any compassion for you just because you’re a woman, you’re no more than pathetic scum.” That said, he kicked her, pushing her off the bed and even dislodging some of her teeth.

“You fucker! How dare you?!” The raging man threw himself at the masked figure, while his wife cried out in pain, about to pass out from seeing the amount of blood coming out of her.

  Silverwire dodged the pimp’s attacks easily, his size and skill allowing for swift movements, whereas the criminal moved slowly and clumsily. For the superhero, it was child’s play. “I thought you were gonna give more of a fight, but you’re just a disgusting bastard. Though it’s really convenient for me, the police won’t be long.”

  The pimp was blinded by rage at that point, and his movements were much more erratic. Silverwire delivered a hard kick to his stomach, which sent him to the ground, writhing in pain. Without giving him a chance to recover, he kicked him in the face several times. Upon seeing this, the woman began shrieking.

 To Silverwire, killing them was not enough: he needed them to suffer. While the man lay near-unmoving, he withdrew one of his blades and cut off the man’s hand. The pained scream was grating. All the occupants of the house were locked in their rooms, crying while they heard the horrible commotion, with no intention to assist the owners of the establishment. The young women had no way of knowing if whatever was causing the noise would come for them next.

   In the bedroom, the woman was close to aphonic after witnessing how her husband’s hand was severed. “Soon it’ll be your turn.” The hooded man warned, taking the opportunity to divest the man of his pants, leaving him completely bare from the waist down.

“I bet you used _that_ to torture more than one woman. It’s only fair that we use it to torture you now.” Despite the pain, the man tried to move away, to escape. He could imagine what would follow, but the only thing he could do was look on, his eyes wide open as his executioner, with a prompt, clean cut, mutilated him. His body contorted in pain and suffering drove him to a crazed state, one that his wife was not too far from.

“I told you your turn would come very soon…” Silverwire kicked the bloody appendage, which came to a stop directly in front of the woman’s face, her screams of terror had subsided, as she lost her voice. “Oh, it looks like you hurt your voice, I wasn’t expecting that.” He pointed out calmly, as if he was discussing the weather. He approached the woman, who could barely recognize him though her tears. In spite of trying, he could not be as cruel to her as he had been to her husband. So, he limited himself to pulling her up by the hair and, with one of his blades, slicing her throat, throwing her aside to die slowly.

  In that very moment, officers Eren and Mikasa entered the bedroom. Silverwire had been so caught up in his torture session that he had failed to notice the patrols’ arrival and search of the house.

  Noticing the scene, Eren tried to approach and engage the man in a fight, but Mikasa seized him by the shoulder, keeping him from going forward.

“Remember what the boss said. We have to be careful, we don’t stand a chance against him; and besides, there’s nothing left to do here...” She said, diverting her brother’s gaze from the agonizing, bleeding bodies.

  Eren ceded and both exited the bedroom. Silverwire did not wait any longer and ran towards the roof to escape. Immediately after, Mikasa sent word to her superior, who was still stationed out of the house.  Erwin could spot the shadow leaving the window and shooting a cable at the neighboring roof.

“Oh, no, you’re not getting away this time.” The blond grabbed one of the police motorcycles and sped after the criminal, who was already airborne, and advancing rapidly in his flight. Erwin opened fire in an attempt to bring him down; he knew that without the strange contraption it would be impossible for him to get away.

“Tch, I shouldn’t have gotten so carried away with those pigs.” He said to himself. Then, the unexpected happened; in all his years as Silverwire, the amount of times he had made a mistake had been next to zero. But this time, stuck between the rage he was still feeling and the thrill of being chased by a worthy opponent, he did not notice that he had aimed one of his hooks at a building that was falling apart.

   The concrete came away immediately and, having lost his grip and balance, he fell hopelessly, flattening himself against the wall of the building; even getting hit by some rubble.

Erwin, who had been following him closely, did not take long to arrive; he got off the motorcycle and approached the masked man, who still had not recovered from the fall and seemed slightly out of it from the hits he had taken to the head.

“At last, we meet face to face…,” he came to stand right before the man, “…if you can even call it that.” He crouched to Silverwire’s height, the man still stunned from the drop. “There’s so much I want to know, but what really intrigues me right now is, why did you commit such an atrocity? My officers tell me that you only tortured and killed the owners of the brothel, no one else. Why only them? Why this place instead of the others?”

“You can keep asking questions…” he answered weakly, “…but I won’t answer any of them. Let’s say I had unfinished business with that rabble. After all, I can’t stand bastards who take advantage of innocent people.”

  Erwin was not expecting that answer. Was Silverwire really in favor of justice? Or it all because he found pleasure in killing and torturing? Out of some kind of psychosis or mental illness exclusive to criminals and murderers.

  The blond came closer still and grabbed the man’s shoulder, pulling him up forcefully and walking him to a utility pole, where he cuffed him.

“You’re under arrest, I’ll go call for backup.” The officer walked a couple of paces and took out his radio. “It’s me, the perp is on the loose, I’m returning to the crime scene now.” When he turned around, Silverwire had already vanished. He knew that a pair of cuffs would pose no challenge for him.

  The chief got back on his bike and returned to the scene, where his officers were wrapping up the operation. “Though this goes against all of my principles, we’re even now, Silverwire. I couldn’t stand the idea of owing you my life and if you went to prison, I wouldn’t have had the chance to pay you back…”

* * *

 

 The op was successful, save for the wreck Silverwire left behind. The police managed to arrest all the people implicated in human trafficking on site. They were also able to free ten young women who had been forced into sex work. Historia among them.

  Ymir had remained in the area, waiting for the police to take over, but she became alert when she saw the victims were starting to be evacuated. At last, she saw her, being escorted by Gunther; as soon as she cleared the door, Ymir ran to meet her.

“Christa,” The brunette reached her and, ignoring the officer, enveloped the shorter woman in the tightest, most protective of hugs.

“Ymir! What are you doing here?” the blonde questioned, on the verge of tears.

“I said I wouldn’t leave you, and I’d find the way to get you out of there.”

“You told the police how to find us.” Historia immediately understood what had happened. “Thank you!” She hugged her tightly, grateful that she kept her promise.

“No, you don’t have to thank me, but rather the policemen and that guy in the mask. I heard he destroyed those fuckers, I’m honestly happy that they’re dead.” She expressed offhandedly.

“Don’t say that!” Both burst out in nervous laughter, still processing that it was all over.

“You’ve talked enough, I need to take her now, she needs to be checked by a medic and give a statement, like everyone else.” Gunther reprimanded, he had given them time to reunite but he still needed to do his job.

   Eren approached Ymir and asked her to join them as well, to be properly checked and questioned. Everything needed to be on the report, in order for the surviving perpetrators to be sentenced. As Historia was already with the police, she accepted. She did not have a place to go anyway.

* * *

 

“Levi!” The woman called out, entering Ackerman’s office that afternoon. “Tell me what happened. I just watched the news and you were mentioned, did you get up to something this morning?”

“Can you stop yelling, four-eyes?” He complained, “My head hurts too much, I think I hurt myself some.” He admitted, massaging his temples and frowning more than usual.

“Let me examine you but, in the meantime, I want to know what happened.” The woman demanded, coming closer to inspect his wounds.

  Ackerman narrated what happened, not leaving out any details regarding the murder of the traffickers, delighting even in his own retelling. Like a success to take pride in. He was happy about what he had done, and he did not hesitate to show it.

“Hmm, what I don’t understand is why the chief let you get away…” she questioned, “it makes no sense, because he’s so obsessed with catching you.”

“That surprised me, too. I have no idea what goes through that man’s head.” Just when Hanji was about to comment, Levi’s secretary announced on the intercom that an Erwin Smith was on the line. Both Hanji and Levi looked intrigued and he told his secretary to put the man through.

_“Hel-hello? it’s Erwin”_

“How may I help you today, chief?”

_“I’m sorry to bother, I don’t know if you’re busy right now.”_

“Not at all, please continue.”

_“I was wondering if we could meet tonight? I had to leave you yesterday, and I feel a little guilty about it. Besides, I had a pretty agitated day and I think it’d do me well to have a couple of drinks with you. That is, if you don’t have other plans.”_

“No, I don’t. I think it’s perfect, I’ll tell my driver to get you and we can have dinner at my place. My chef has an exquisite taste, and I’d like you to experience it, too.”

 _“Excellent! See you tonight, Mr. Ackerman.”_ The blond said. He did not know why he had done that, he had gone through a lot of stress that day, but he did not want to call Eren to his apartment again, which had been happening a lot lately and the only other person he could think of to decompress with and talk to was Levi.

“Don’t you think you’re getting too close to that guy?” Hanji commented seriously. “I don’t feel good about it, I think he wants something. What if he suspects you?”

“I’m not stupid, Hanji, and I’m old enough to know how to take care of myself. I’m simply toying with him and gaining his trust, that way he’ll be very useful in the future. It’ll be a lot easier for me to avoid getting caught if I get Erwin to tell me his strategies himself. That way he won’t be an obstacle and I won’t have to worry about him.” He said, exceedingly confident, but without revealing to her that he also was interested in Erwin as a rival and even physically.

“Fine, I trust your instinct; after all, it’s what’s gotten you this far.”

 

* * *

 

 

   At the police department, the girls were seen to and interrogated. They would try to return them to their families, if they had them, and rehabilitate them in a social reintegration program.

“What are you gonna do, Christa? Are you gonna go back to your father?” Ymir questioned.

“I think it would be best for now, if he takes me,” the blonde admitted, “wait! How did you know? I never got around to telling you.”

“The police told me everything or, at least, what they knew. Who’d guess that you’re the great Historia Reiss, the senator’s daughter?”

“I’m sorry, Ymir, it’s not as easy as it sounds. I’d prefer to stay Christa Lenz…”

“Absolutely not!” The blonde gaped at her, “you should live comfortably, and take all the advantage you can. If you don’t want to keep living with him, use him and then discard him.”

“Ymir…”

“I know it sounds cruel, but that’s life, Historia, that’s how the world works. The big fish eats the little fish, and you can’t let yourself be eaten,” she urged, “and you don’t have to feel alone, I’ll be with you from now on, you only need to call, and I’ll be there. I promise.”

“Ymir, I don’t know what to say, but you’ve opened my eyes and taught me so much. I think I’ll do what you’re telling me. What will you do now, though?” Historia worried, knowing that Ymir had no family or place to return to, she was alone in the world and penniless, to boot.

“I guess I’ll go back to the streets, like before I was trapped there,” she shrugged, “if I managed to survive my whole life, I can keep doing it, don’t worry about that; I’ll make sure to stay near so I can visit you often.” She ended with a smile.

“No! I won’t allow it!” The brunette nearly jumped at her reaction, she had never seen her like that. “I’ll convince my father to give you a job and that way you can make a nice life for yourself. I’ll work hard and study as well; I’ll become governor of this city and help people like you and me, and our friends, who have suffered so much. And I’ll focus on eliminating all the brothels that operate in such a cruel way. That will be my purpose in life.” She declared, entirely convinced of her words.

“I think that’s great! But don’t worry about me, I know how to take care of myself.”

“I won’t stand for it! I’m not going to let the person I love live on the streets ever again.” Ymir did not know how to react. She was touched by Historia’s good intentions and surprised at her confession, because she doubted her feelings were reciprocated; and happy, for the opportunity to have a real home.

“Christa…  I…” for the first time ever, Historia got to see Ymir vulnerable and speechless. “…I love you, and I don’t know what to say. Fuck! You caught me off-guard.” She laughed nervously.

“You just have to say that you’ll come with me, that’s it. And I think you should keep calling me Christa, I like the way you say it.” The blonde smiled sweetly. Ymir could only respond by hugging her tightly, bringing her face closer to join their lips in a clumsy but sweet kiss. “I love you, too, Ymir.” Historia, when they separated. Both women were blushing, excited with the knowledge that the nightmare was over. Deep inside, they thanked having gone through that, for in the midst of adversity, their love was born, and they had found a purpose and a future together.

* * *

 

  Erwin prepared to go to Levi’s house: he chose another one of his best suits, put on some cologne and combed his hair neatly. The driver picked him up on time at his apartment, as he had been instructed. On arrival at the manor, a butler opened the door and directed him to an ample sitting room, one he had not seen the day before. The place had a high ceiling, elegantly adorned with a spider chandelier, fine wooden furniture and velvet. All in all, the place was rather glamorous.

“Erwin, welcome.” Levi, who quickly entered the room, greeted, cutting short his time to snoop around. “I hope you don’t mind waiting a little, because dinner isn’t ready yet.” He apologized.

“Oh, Levi! Not at all, quite the contrary, thanks for the invitation.” The blond rose to shake his hand, which he corresponded.

“Absolutely, thank you for coming, as I told you before, my work doesn’t permit me to socialize much. But tell me, what really brings you here? I’m sure there’s something more.” He said, perceptively.

“You’ve caught me!” Erwin laughed heartily before confessing his true motives. “Believe it or not, you were quite helpful today, I was very close to catching Silverwire.”

“Yeah? And what was this help I supposedly gave you?” The businessman hid his surprise under the serious, expressionless look he usually wore.

“Well, I managed to get close to him and I think I learned several things. All because I had one of those motorcycles you gave us on hand.”

“So that’s what it was” Levi suppressed his sigh of relief as best he could, once he realized there was nothing to worry about.

“Yes. Unfortunately, he escaped this time as well.” He said with a tone of resignation.

“There’ll be more opportunities, Erwin.” Ackerman offered.

“Dinner’s been served, sir.” The butler announced, and Levi ushered the blond to the dining room, which was just as ample and luxurious as the rest of the mansion.

  Both ate quietly, Levi asked Erwin to tell him about the day’s adventures, he found it interesting to hear it from the blond’s perspective. The policeman, on the other hand, did not know why he was so open about his work with someone he had just met. Nevertheless, he found it nice and sharing all of it with Levi unburdened him.

“Everything was delicious. Please give my compliments to the chef.”

“I’m glad you liked it, but I hope you saved some room for a couple drinks.” Erwin nodded, smiling, and Levi ushered him into a bedroom. The same pattern repeated, it was as elegant as the rest of the house and so clean he could almost see his reflection on the floor.

  The blond found it strange that he was being taken there instead of to the study, but he did not dislike it. Levi poured him a glass of whisky, based on previous experience, and one for himself, wishing to drink something stronger than the night before.

“That guy has been giving you trouble, huh?” he broke the silence, “in my humble opinion, you should set him a trap in order to get him.”

“Eh? Well, it’s a bit more complicated than that, Levi, but I guess you are right, to an extent.” The blond took a sip of his drink and an idea invaded his mind. “Wait, why are you telling me that? Aren’t you a fan of Silverwire?” He questioned.

“I thought we’d already established, I’m not on anyone’s side, Erwin. However,” he left his tumbler on the night stand and approached the blond with slow but elegant movements. “…lately, I’ve found myself more attracted to yours…” Levi grabbed his tie and pulled him down to his height. “…or rather, to you.” He ended the phrase in a whisper, staring at him with those eyes that seemed to penetrate deep within him.

“Yeah?” It was true that that look intimidated him a lot, but Erwin was not about to give himself away, so he imitated Levi’s playful tone. “May I know why the sudden interest?” He asked.

“You know I have a special taste for uncommon things, chief.” Levi walked around Erwin slowly, tracing his torso and back with his index finger. “And I believe you’re peculiar enough to enter that category. What followed surprised the blond even more: the shorter man put his arms around his shoulders, making him bend down to his level. While their faces were mere centimetres apart, still not touching, Levi pulled Erwin to the bed; Levi on his back and Erwin on top of him, still trapped by the other’s arms.

“I think I’ll have to prove whether I’m up to your high standards. Right, Mr. Ackerman?” Erwin flirted to mask his amazement at the man’s brazen proposal.

“Don’t worry about that, officer, I’m sure you’ll be able to please me just fine.” Having said that, Levi tried to join their lips, but Erwin turned his face away with censure. “Or maybe not…”

“I’m sorry, Levi…” that part Erwin always found difficult to explain, besides being a mood killer, “…I don’t have a problem with kisses on any other place, but I don’t tend to kiss anyone on the lips. I hope that won’t be an obstacle.” This time he felt truly embarrassed and he did not bother to hide it.

“You should’ve said that before.” Levi chuckled. “I have no problem with that, officer, I’m sure we’ll find better uses for our tongues.” He ended with a very suggestive half smile.

 Erwin began to kiss Levi’s neck in apology, giving slight licks as well, while he slowly unbuttoned his shirt. Without preamble, the raven cupped his partner’s crotch, vigorously massaging him through his trousers. Erwin could not help biting down every time a shudder ran through him.

“You’re very sensitive, Erwin.” The shorter man said playfully, reveling in the other’s scrape of teeth and tongue on his skin. The blond noticed Levi’s ample experience when it came to sex, so he chose to also skip some of the foreplay and started to undo his pants, quickly leaving him in his underwear and shirtsleeves.

“And you have an admirable physique.” He replied after careful contemplation of Levi’s chest, with well-defined abs and pecs, and also his legs. He had never pictured it, as the clothes he wore gave nothing away. Levi only laughed softly and proceeded to undress his counterpart.

   When both were down to their underwear, Levi moved using his strength and easily placed himself on top. Erwin was speechless once more; he would have never thought such a short man to be so strong. Levi looked down on him with hunger and he did not wait: Erwin seemed like an exquisite treat. The blond had thick, long legs, which the shorter man caressed with both hands before moving back up to fondle his toned chest and large pecs.

“You’re full of surprises, Ackerman.” Erwin was the one to laugh this time and decided to let go and enjoy the moment, since Levi seemed to be taking charge of things. As soon as Erwin finished his sentence, Levi pounced on one of his nipples, licking fervently while his fingers tangled in blond locks and his lower half grinded against Erwin’s crotch, both still covered.

  Erwin was more than perplexed at such a display of passion and experience. It was wildly different from any of his recent encounters with Eren. Not wanting to just sit there, the officer moved both hands beneath his partner’s underwear, squeezing his bum and pulling him closer against himself, increasing the friction between their member. Both men were turned on and their erections pronounced.

  Lust exploded in both men immediately, Levi biting and sucking Erwin’s nipples, alternating between the two, and Erwin massaging slowly at his opposite’s entrance. When Levi decided he was sufficiently aroused, he left Erwin’s chest to get rid of their remaining clothes.

  The shorter man, clearly in the lead, waited no longer, taking Erwin’s well-endowed member in hand, jerking him off and delighting in the precum that began to form at the tip. Erwin felt waves of pleasure coursing through him and a blush invaded his face as he panted. Levi raised himself and began to sit on Erwin’s member.

“Levi!” The policeman called out, as he felt his erection being enveloped by the wet heat. Without missing a beat, Ackerman began moving his hips rhythmically and in a way that would hit the spot that made him feel the most pleasure. At the same time, Erwin stroked him, which served to excite both even further.

  Erwin was able to open his eyes some minutes later and admire the vision that was Levi on top, sweaty and riding him, enjoyment clear on his face; he could not hold back his climax, saying Levi’s name on a throaty moan. Like music to his ears, his reaction detonated the last wave of pleasure in his counterpart, who came to completion and moaned similarly.

  Though they did not show it, both men were astonished at how quickly they had become aroused by the other. Apparently, their physical attraction was stronger than it seemed. In that moment, they did not weigh the problems that could bring in the future but, instead, both thought that there was no harm in earning the other’s trust through such fulfilling sex sessions.

“Well?” Erwin dared to question while he panted, trying to get his breathing back to normal. “After all, did I manage to satisfy your demanding tastes?”

“Exceedingly, my dear chief, truly…” Levi said without hesitation. He then rose from the bed and took some wet wipes out of the bedside table, which he promptly used to clean Erwin up. At the latter’s surprise, he explained, “Please, don’t mind me, this is just in the meantime, while we go for a shower.” It was in that moment that the blond noticed Levi’s strange fixation with cleaning, though it failed to bother him.

“Did you say…” he cleared his throat before continuing, “…while we go for a shower? Plural?” The lust in his gaze only mirroring that found in Levi’s.

“If you don’t mind joining me in the shower, Chief Erwin.” Both smiled playfully and set out for a second round under the warm water.

 

To be continued…

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about the awful lemon, and for not using lube lol back then I didn’t really care about writing good sexual stuff because I don’t really like sex, for me is more or less the same always so I tend to skip those parts. I could have written that they used lube or condoms in this version, but I wanted to keep the original fic as it is even in the translation.


	7. Concerns

 

“H-hello, chief.” After several days, Eren could not stand the uncertainty any longer, so he went to Erwin’s office to find out why the man had stopped inviting him to his apartment; and why he was acting so distant.

“Oh, Eren. Please come in, what brings you around these parts?” The blond smiled cordially, as per usual, and invited him in, motioning Eren to the chair in front of his desk.

“Chief, I wanted to talk to you about something important.” He managed to get out, despite the nerves and embarrassment. Deciding to speak with Erwin had been somewhat difficult. The real hardship was actually broaching the subject, even though Erwin always seemed kind and understanding.

“Of course, come in. I’m all ears.” Erwin, who was very perceptive, immediately noticed his subordinate’s apprehension. He could see how the younger man’s lip trembled slightly, how he hid his hands on his lap, how his cheeks reddened, and how his gaze never met Erwin’s own. “There’s no reason to be nervous, Eren, please tell me what you need.” He tried to encourage him to talk. “I have no problem if it’s something personal.” He finished.

“Huh?!” The brunet became extremely surprised, Erwin had seen right through him, and it would not surprise him if the man already knew what Eren was about to ask. He had no choice but to take a deep breath and gather the courage to start talking.

“Chief, I’ll go straight to the point, since this is a little awkward for me… May I know why you haven’t invited me to your place again? I mean, I know we’re not in a relationship or anything like that; but, since we started sleeping together, it’s never been this long since we’ve done it, and I’m worried that maybe it’s because of something I did.”

   The blond studied Eren for a few seconds before replying. He had suspected that to be the Eren’s reason to come to his office. He was aware of the routine they had established, and of how he had broken it completely after meeting Ackerman. Erwin had never had better sex than with Levi, and Eren did not satisfy him the same way, so he began to withdraw from him and meet Levi more frequently.

“I’m sorry, Eren, but I’ve been very busy lately. You know that this chief business can get complicated at times, more so with the difficult cases we’ve been getting recently.” He lied. It wasn’t as if he was throwing Eren away like he was nothing; in fact, that was the last thing he wanted but, unconsciously, he had stopped seeking the other out as often.

“I-I understand… I’m sorry to have bothered you. But still, are you sure I didn’t do anything to make you angry?” Eren insisted, not convinced by his boss’s mediocre excuse.

“Please don’t worry about that. And I’m sorry I didn’t say anything. Tomorrow we’ll both be off; would you like to go to my apartment in the afternoon? I can make us lunch and then we can watch a movie if you want.” Erwin felt guilty, he simply preferred to do things the right way. He never wanted Eren to feel like an object for sex and so he made sure to spoil him whenever possible, though both had agreed on a strictly sexual relationship, without involving feelings. Whatever the case, they had developed a friendship and Erwin intended to keep it.

“Please! Don’t do all that just for me.” Eren looked even more nervous than he had before, and he also looked ashamed.

“It’s no bother, I had nothing planned for tomorrow, anyway. Eren, we’re still friends, yes? And you’re right, I’ve neglected our friendship lately, so I want to make it up to you.”

  The “we’re friends” felt like a punch to the gut to Eren, as if a bucket of ice cold water had been dumped on his head. He knew well enough that his relationship with Erwin was only of a sexual nature, that the older man was just too nice, and thus always treated him with kindness. He had not contemplated the possibility of being in love with his boss but, at that moment, he wondered, why had that phrase hurt him so? Why was he feeling a heavy weight on his chest?

“Okay, we have a deal then.” He was finally able to say, smiling cheerfully at the man.

“That’s my boy! Now go back to work, I don’t want our personal business to interfere with our work.”

“Yes, sir!” Eren exited the office, leaving Erwin with his thoughts. What was he to do about Eren? He enjoyed their time together and had even become endeared to the man. Their friendship was real, and while the sex was far from bad, being with Levi was simply on another level. Erwin knew he did not have anything serious going on with either, and that he didn’t owe loyalty or exclusivity to the boy. Yet, he was incapable of pushing him away completely or, at least, unwilling to do so.

“I’ll try to make this work, Eren…” Erwin came to the conclusion that it was possible to keep up both his strange relationship with his subordinate and his encounters with Levi. He just needed to limit the time he dedicated to either.

* * *

 

“What’s wrong, Eren?” His best friend queried, noticing the brunet’s lost gaze and untouched food. They had decided to go out for dinner that night with Mikasa and Annie, Armin’s girlfriend.

“Nothing, Armin!” He said defensively, to no avail. His friend knew him really well, and was a psychologist, to boot; capable of understanding him completely, without needing to talk much.

“You’ve been very weird lately, Eren.” Annie interjected. The woman did not see him often, but even she could see that something was not right.

“Are you serious?” He gave up. Mikasa, who had been quiet the entire time, chose to speak up at last:

“We know your deal, Eren.” She paused to gauge her brother’s reaction and continued. “We know about you and the boss.” She stated at the blonds’ twin looks of surprise.

“What?! I’m not…” He did not know how to react. Getting angry would not only be counterproductive, but also uncalled for. He was certain that his sister was just worried about him. “It’s not what you think, we’re not a couple or anything, we just fuck. The story’s a bit complicated.” He decided it was best to tell the truth.

“That’s what you always say, and then you end up falling straight into the arms of any fool who treats you well.” Annie said. The woman was not famous for her tact, but Eren could recognize that she was right.

“Eren,” his sister interrupted once more, “it’s better that you stop this before you get hurt again. Erwin is a much older man and I’m sure he’s not interested in having a relationship with you, not to mention that he’s your boss.” Mikasa was extremely worried about her brother and, once she decided to talk, nothing on Earth would silence her.

“I know! I know! You don’t have to keep repeating it. Like I’ve been trying to say, it’s just sex! Neither of us is involving our feelings.” He tried to clarify, so they would get off his case. He knew they were only after his wellbeing, but he was sick of being treated like a teenager.

  Before Mikasa or Annie could throw another hurtful comment, Armin began once more:

“Alright, Eren, we won’t meddle anymore, but please, if you feel like you’re falling for him, you should end the relationship. It’s not good for you, we all know how badly it affects you.” He spoke in the friendliest, most understanding tone he could muster, therefore Eren would not get defensive again.

“Yeah, yeah… I appreciate the concern, but there really isn’t anything going on, it’s different this time.” He tried to put on the most cheerful smile he had, and make them see that nothing was happening, though he himself could not believe that, he simply failed to understand what was wrong with his head.

   After saying goodbye to Annie, the three officers returned to their homes. The topic of Eren was through and his friends were not going to insist; in the end, they knew he was an adult and therefore had to mature and learn to face the challenges that came his way as best he could. Eren, who had spent the rest of the meal as uncomfortable as them, decided that the best course of action would be to take his best friend’s advice, so he went straight home. His stepsister immediately knew that they were going to discuss the same thing again, also that Eren did not feel comfortable having those kinds of conversations. Despite feeling bad about it, she chose not to intrude and leave it all on Armin’s expert hands.

“I’m listening, Eren.” The blond invited him to begin, perfectly aware that his friend was going to have trouble broaching the subject, despite having asked for a word in private.

“Armin, the truth is that…” he searched for the right words to explain his predicament, but even he did not know what was happening. “…I don’t know what’s wrong with me. I don’t really feel like I’m in love with the chief, but the fact that we don’t see each other that often still makes me feel bad. And I’m happy when we can meet, because he doesn’t treat me like I’m his bitch. He says we’re friends and, far from making me feel good, that just gets me thinking.” He came clean about his feelings on the matter.

“I see. So, if what you feel isn’t love, there’s nothing to worry about.” Armin decided that, for the time being, it would be wiser to play along. If he contradicted Eren, he would get defensive and never realize what he truly felt on his own. To the psychologist, it was obvious that his friend had fallen in love.

“Eh? Just like that? No psychological explanation?” The brunet asked, unbelieving.

“Of course, no one can know what you’re feeling better than you can. If you say it’s not love, then it isn’t.”

“Good, then there’s nothing to be concerned about.” Eren laughed forcibly, his mirth only a facade to hide his disappointment at Armin’s lack of response. The young man bid farewell to Armin and returned home, a lot more pensive and with more doubts than he had before, but with the certainty that he must find answers by himself.

* * *

 

  Morning came quickly, and with it another day. New zest filled the green-eyed man. If there was one thing that characterized Eren, it was being an optimist who generally did not let his problems weigh him down too much if he could solve them. He had decided that what he felt toward Erwin was nothing more than a strong friendship and affection and that it would remain thusly.

  Besides, even if he did not want to admit it, the reason why he was so happy and felt so renewed that day, was simply because he would go see Erwin. They were to have a warm movie afternoon and, later, sex. He was pretty excited about the idea.

  At lunchtime, the younger man arrived at his boss’s apartment. He had paid special attention to his appearance that day; showering thoroughly and dressing as best he could. He applied perfume liberally and even attempted to tame his wild mane, in order to look more serious and mature.

“Eren! I was waiting for you, please come in.” The blond greeted. At once, he noticed the effort the man had put in and felt simultaneously flattered and worried. In spite of their understanding, Erwin knew that the man was still rather young and could get confused or develop feelings for him easily. It was something of a dangerous situation, as he did not wish to hurt him, but he knew that pushing him away could cause even more harm. He pondered if he should give it a chance and start a serious relationship.

“H-hello, chief. Thanks again for inviting me.” The young man stated nervously, and he could not explain why, since he had been alone with the blond countless times. It was not the time to feel anxious.

“You don’t have to thank me.” He said, smiling affably. “By the way, you look really handsome today. You didn’t go through all that trouble for me, did you?”

“Huh?!” The comment took him by surprise. “N-no, I didn’t realize. I really didn’t do it on purpose, just did the necessary.” Knowing how bad a liar he was, he laughed nervously.

“Well, in any case, you look very nice.” Erwin entered the apartment and walked into the kitchen. “I was just finishing up with lunch, I hope you enjoy it. We can watch a movie afterwards, why don’t you go pick something you like?” He tried to make the young man feel comfortable.

“Sure- sure! Right away.” Eren’s heart raced, his hands sweaty and trembling, and he could not keep his eyes from diverting towards the handsome figure in the kitchen. What was that about? He was certain that he was not in love.

  Both men ate quietly while watching a comedy movie, which helped Eren relax and feel more at ease. They finally had the much-anticipated sex session, which he enjoyed even more than usual.

Erwin, on his part, was still debating what to do with Eren. To him, it was a hard call between trying a relationship with him, despite not feeling anything beyond a profound friendship for him; or continuing as they were until the younger man wound up completely in love with him.

  Eren parted late that night, having rejected his invitation to dinner; partly because he felt he was abusing Erwin’s kindness and partly because, despite what they had just done, he could not bear how unsettled he was in the man’s presence. He truly could not explain it, but he had decided not to worry about it anymore, and instead continue to enjoy every time they were able to get together, as per usual.

  The blonde was in a pensive mood and sighed at not finding solution to the difficult predicament. He did not enjoy the feeling, as he was used to having everything under control. But it seemed like, since his move to Sina, everything was uncontrollable: his relationship with Eren, his rivalry with Silverwire and his strange new relationship with Levi, who seemed capable of dragging him into any of his eccentric plans. And then, as if he had been invoked, the businessman called.

_“Erwin.”_

“Hello, Levi. What can I do for you?”

_“I wanted to ask you out to dinner, there’s a new restaurant that I’ve been wanting to go to for a few days now but haven’t had the chance yet.”_

“I see…” he said in a low, slightly dejected tone.

 _“Is something wrong? It’s your day off, right? You’re not busy.”_ Ackerman registered his lack of interest.

“No! I’m sorry, Levi, it’s just that I don’t feel like having sex tonight, you know? I’m really sorry, but I have to decline your invitation.”

 _“What do you think you are to me, Erwin? A gigolo I pay with food? I’m asking you to dinner and it offends me that you think I only seek you out to sleep with you_.” He reprimanded severely, in that cold tone that cut deep into anyone, and with which he had brought to tears many unlucky people who had dared cross him.

“I’m sorry! Oh, this is so embarrassing, I really apologize for my attitude.” He apologized, extremely ashamed.

 _“I’ll only accept your joining me for dinner as an apology. My driver will pick you up in thirty minutes, I hope you’re ready”_ he practically ordered.

“Alright, I’ll see you later then.” Resigned, he had no other choice but to accept. It was precisely that kind of situation that worried him. Levi was capable of tangling him in his web and do whatever he wanted with Erwin. Erwin, who was concerned about ending up getting devoured, as a spider’s prey.

  That night, he dined at an elegant and very expensive restaurant in the wealthiest part of the city, in the company of his “friend” Levi. They had a nice evening, discussed various topics and said their goodbyes. There were no sexual innuendos, or anything of the sort. He wondered if Levi truly considered him as his friend. Perhaps it was true that the businessman was very lonely and had found in him someone to rely on. Erwin did not know what to believe. Despite being involved with the raven for a while, he could not decipher if there were hidden intentions behind that front of so-called friendship, as he was able to ascertain that night that the man was not only after him to bed him.

  Both situations worried him greatly and annoyed him, as they were getting out of hand. He had to stay alert with Ackerman and control himself with Eren. If seeing Eren had made him reflective, dining with Levi had made it worse. Now he had two more things on his mind, beside his incessant struggle to catch his #1 sworn enemy, the famous Silverwire, from whom he had heard no news in a couple of weeks and who he feared was planning something big for his next hit.

 

* * *

 

   There was a commotion at the department the following day. Erwin walked in and went straight to his to his office, noticing the how the stares followed him and how the officers whispered among themselves. The blond wondered what the buzz was about, but he suspected the would find out soon enough.

   He had not been in his office for an hour when Mike barged in and placed a newspaper on his boss’s desk. Wordlessly, he gestured towards the cover, where a small section with Erwin and Levi’s photo invited him to read the article. Erwin lifted one of his brows while he read it in the celebrity section:

The headline was: _“Multimillionaire businessman and the chief of police?”_

  The piece showed a photo of the pair from the night before, quietly having dinner, and explained how Ackerman had made several donations to the police department and how both men had been spotted together frequently in the recent weeks. The journalist who wrote it questioned whether their relationship was purely business, as business men like Ackerman had always donated generously to various causes; or if there was something else behind all of it.

“So this is why everyone was whispering behind my back?” Erwin laughed merrily.

“Seems like it, sir.” Mike really did not care about it, he simply had enough loyalty to Erwin to show him why everyone was losing it over him. He well knew that Erwin had already earned himself a good reputation and the city’s trust, which would make it very difficult for such an article to tarnish that in any real way.

  Meanwhile, Eren, whom the news had also reached, was locked in one of the station’s bathrooms. He read the article over and over and kept looking at the picture; it was evident that both men were having a wonderful time.

“Is this why he doesn’t see me as often? Could it be that the chief was in a relationship with that rich man?” He wondered while checking the newspaper once more, with shaking hands, holding the material strongly and finally noticing the state he was in. “What the hell is happening to you, Eren? It’s as if you were jealous… But, I would never!, of course I’m not jealous, in order to be, I’d have to be in love and I’m not!” He tried to convince himself. The stubborn man would not accept his feelings so easily.

  The week was uneventful, with the usual crimes and minor affairs. Levi had not gone out as Silverwire in a number of weeks as, being closer to the chief, he could know about the big ones beforehand, and Erwin had not mentioned anything out of the ordinary. His infiltrated contacts had not delivered any new information either. It seemed that, lately, the city was more at peace; and he knew that was mainly thanks to Erwin. The man’s reputation transcended, and he guessed that the criminals no longer dared to operate with the same ease.

  The level of peace that the city was experiencing gave way for the media to pay attention to another kind high profile affairs, like the new rumor regarding the closeness between those two men. They were caught by the paparazzi once more, and new articles littered the magazines and tabloids.

“Look, Erwin, it seems like we made the paper again.” Levi, who was reading the newspaper, commented from his naked perch on the bed.

“What does it say this time?” the blond asked from his side.

“ _Business or Love? Suspicions continue to surround Levi Ackerman, the city’s multimillionaire, most coveted bachelor, and the highly acclaimed chief of Sina PD, Erwin Smith…_ ” Levi giggled before he read any more, as if it was the most comical thing to him. Erwin joined him, refusing to give the article too much importance.

“I’m sure that your sales will go up from this.”

“It’s very likely. Those bastards think they have the story of the year and more than one of them is probably looking to harm me, but what those idiots don’t understand is that they’re giving me more publicity.”

   Both men laughed at that. Neither was concerned about a scandal as there was no emotional relationship to speak of and therefore, nothing to hide. They would let the masses believe what they wanted to.

   A few days later, Levi attended a social function with Hanji as his date. He disliked having to take the woman and make public appearances with her, but she was his only friend beside Isabel and Farlan, so he lacked options. The event’s guest list was comprised of the richest and most powerful people in the city, so the press and papparazi covering the event mobbed the couple upon their arrival at the gala, overwhelming them with questions.

_“Mr. Ackerman, what do you think about the rising level of poverty in the less privileged population? Will you donate as you do in other areas?"_

_"Over here, Mr. Ackerman! Did you bring guests? Are you here for business?"_

_"Channel 64, sir. Are you in a relationship with the chief of police? Are you openly gay?"_

_"Will the President be in attendance? Are you interested in politics?"_

_“Sir, I see your date is a woman. Are you bisexual? What is your relationship to Erwin Smith?”_

  Some reporters tried to conceal their real interest, while their bolder counterparts inquired about the man’s private affairs directly. He did not answer any questions, completely ignoring them. Hanji, on the other hand, fought the urge to burst out laughing. She waved at the cameras, but her friend stopped her with a pointed elbow or pinch when he caught her trying to reply.

  Meanwhile, countless calls were coming into the police department for Erwin. The curious reporters never managed to satisfy their hunger for gossip and, much like circling vultures, did not let opportunities to pounce on the chief pass them by. Logically, the blond answered no questions, but it got to the point where he had to order that no calls be put through to him, unless they were work related. Though he found it funny, it was beginning to annoy him, after all.

“People really have nothing better to do…” he sighed deeply and continued with his paperwork. Minutes later, his phone began to ring.

“Levi? What a nice surprise, I was just thinking about you.” Just as Erwin answered his phone, Eren was walking to his office but, upon hearing Levi’s name, the younger man hid behind the door to listen to his boss’s conversation. He felt a sort of stab in his chest when he heard that Erwin was thinking about him.

 _“Yeah? Have you fallen for me already, Erwin? You flatter me”_ the businessman joked in a flirty tone of voice.

“Nothing of the sort, I’ve just been getting a lot of calls about you lately. I remember hearing some time ago that there was a betting pool in the office to find out if I was gay or not. I’m thinking this will clear it all up for them.” Both men laughed at Erwin’s comment.

 _“You should’ve placed a bet, Erwin. Would’ve gotten yourself a nice bonus.”_ They laughed together once more. Eren, on the other hand, could only think about the fact that Erwin had never laughed so much with him. He was always kind and smiled, but Eren had never heard him so animated.

“In any case, Mr. Ackerman, to what do I owe this call?”

_“Nothing in particular. I was wondering if you’d accept to have a few drinks with me tonight, and we can discuss some matters of little importance, as per usual.”_

“You know I enjoy your company and our conversations very much. I’ll definitely be there as soon as I finish up with work.”

_“Drowning in overwhelming paperwork, huh? I’ll be waiting for you then, Erwin.”_

   When they hung up, Eren carefully peeked inside to examine his boss’s face. To his absolute terror and disaffection, the blond wore a fairly pleased expression. As if the simple act of talking to that man brought him great joy. The entire thing made him forget what he had gone there for in the first place and, with a heavy chest, he walked away in search of his best friend, who he located quickly. Taking him by the arm, he dragged him to the bathroom.

“Eren! Could you explain to me what’s going on?” Armin interrogated, very alarmed by his friend’s strange attitude.

“I don’t know, Armin! I don’t know!” at seeing his friend’s confused expression, Eren took a deep breath and exhaled in the same manner, before starting his explanation. He told his friend about the short conversation he had overheard, and Erwin’s silly face when he finished talking to the millionaire and reluctantly confessed that it had made him feel bad.

“Eren…”

“What?”

“You already know the answer to this, don’t you?” Armin placed a hand on his friend’s shoulder and made him look into his eyes. “You don’t need me to tell you what’s happening, ‘cause you know exactly what it is. It’s time you admitted it, as for us it’s very clear.”

“Armin, even if it were that way, there’s nothing I can do. We’d made it clear that this relationship would be sex and nothing more.” The brunet explained, ashamed at having to accept what he had so fervently denied.

“That is something the chief has very clear, Eren, but you don’t. Though there is something you can do and that is to stay away and keep your relationship strictly professional.” The smaller blond wisely advised.

“I know, but that’s something that I can’t do at this point. Don’t you think I have a chance with him?” As usual, Eren’s optimistic side shone through; as if accepting his love for Erwin had been a momentary defeat turned into a golden opportunity.

“I can’t answer that, Eren. The only one who knows how the boss feels is the boss himself; but I’d like for you to not start getting ideas. We both know it’s happened to you before, and you’re not very good at handling rejection.”

“But what if it’s different this time?” He insisted.

“Well, it seems that the boss has a much more intimate relationship with Mr. Ackerman. You said that he never laughs or acts that way with you.” At seeing his friend’s disappointed expression, Armin embraced him. “We don’t want you to get hurt again, Eren; and I don’t want you to make a good decision for Mikasa or for me, but for yourself. You need to start valuing yourself more. You’ll meet the right person soon and, when you find them, it’ll happen naturally.”

“Alright. I appreciate it, Armin. I think I feel calmer now, thanks to you,” he lied. His friend’s words did nothing to appease him, no matter how right they were. A fire had been lit inside of him and it would not be easy to extinguish. However, Eren had learned from his previous experiences and would not act recklessly. He would do nothing until he cleared up what he really felt, what Erwin’s relationship to Ackerman was and whether Erwin felt something for him beyond sexual desire. He would never be impulsive again.

   Both officers returned to their tasks, or so Eren thought, as Armin had gone after Mikasa immediately in order to appraise her of the situation. He knew that it was neither convenient nor fair to keep what was happening secret, even if Eren had made him swear not to say anything.

    That evening, Erwin left in his car directly to Levi’s mansion. He wondered why during the day both Mikasa Ackerman and Armin Arlert had glared at him icily, and several times at that, whenever they ran into each other at the precinct; and why Eren looked melancholic and refrained from even speaking to him or even crossing his path. _Had they lost the bet?_

 

To be continued...

 


	8. Revelation Part I

 

  Levi was in his office, focused on his work as CEO. Crime in the city had diminished considerably as of late and he knew it was all thanks to Erwin’s work in the police department; which left him with a lot of free time to dedicate to the tasks related to his job; it also gave him and the blond ample downtime to spend together.

  In recent weeks, they had been seeing the other with much more frequency; it was no longer just fleeting sex sessions at Levi’s mansion, they had started going to other places. They attended social gatherings, went out to dinner, to the theatre and other recreational activities that both enjoyed. They also met, many times, to discuss cases that the police were overseeing.

   Ackerman had discovered that the chief of police had completely lowered his guard round him; it was a lot easier for him to share confidential information about closed cases, information which was unavailable to people who were not members of Sina’s police department or judicial system. He wondered what changed the blond’s mind about him, since he had been defensive and reluctant to share any kind of intel with him, from the beginning.

   But, little by little, he had earned that man’s trust and, while it was true that Erwin never told him anything too deep about the cases he was working, he had become rather explicit with details about closed ones. It had been kind of funny for Levi to hear Erwin’s version of the case in which he had saved Christa and finding out about Erwin’s strange obsession with the so-called criminal, Silverwire.

   To Levi, the real motive for such behavior on Erwin’s part was unknown; maybe it was about the challenge he posed, or some hidden, personal reason he had not shared. The fact was that when the police chief talked about Silverwire, great passion shone in his eyes. It was as if he did not feel a desire to catch him just because he was the most wanted criminal. It appeared that what enthused him was having a worthy opponent or at least, that’s what Levi thought and he had to admit to having similar feelings since the beginning. He knew that Erwin was a challenge and had arrived to put an end to his days of monotony.

   He was pondering that when his noisy friend, Hanji, barged into his office, with her accustomed exuberance and humor.

“Levi!” she yelled, slamming the door behind herself.

“Hanji, I’m asking you to please, for once in your life, act like a normal person; impossible though it may be for you. Try and use the single neuron you have left in that big, hollow head to act your age.” He berated her, annoyed.

“Grumpy as always.” The woman laughed heartily as she sat in front of Levi’s desk. “Well this single neuron is very busy creating new inventions and doing very interesting research.”

“What the hell do you want?”

“Nothing in particular.” Her eyes were full of mischief, as if she was in on some embarrassing secret. “I just find it strange that you haven’t gone out as Silverwire lately. I’ve been working on some accessories for you and we haven’t had the chance to test them.”

“You know nothing major’s happened, Hanji. I haven’t gotten any calls from Petra and I doubt she’s hiding information from me.”

“Yeah, you’re right about that, this chief turned out to be extremely efficient.”

“Spit out what you’re thinking already, Hanji.” From the look on her face, Levi knew they had arrived at the reason behind his friend’s visit.

“Speaking of the chief…” she continued, as if she had not heard Levi’s last comment, “…you’ve gone out with him a lot these past few weeks. You’re all everyone talks about. Rumor has it you’re dating.” The woman could not help widely smile nor staring accusingly at him.

“That’s none of your business, they can talk all they want. Those idiots are only giving me more publicity.”

“Hey, Levi,” she continued, ignoring his words, “aren’t you in an actual relationship with him?”

   The man was shocked by the ludicrous assumption and glared at her in displeasure.

“You damn well know that my only interest in Erwin Smith is his potential as a source, at a higher level, within the police; and to keep tabs on him at my convenience.” He tried to clarify, though himself could not explain why it annoyed him to do so.

“Fine, fine, I believe you,” Once again, the woman looked at him with mischief in her eyes as she rose and went to the door, “though it seems to me that you make a very nice couple. Not to mention that it’s been years since I’ve seen you this happy.” Hanji closed the door behind herself, just as Levi threw a paperweight in her direction.

“Nice couple… that woman is gonna drive me crazy one of these days.” he grumbled, angry at his friend’s false accusations. Deep down, Levi loved Hanji. After all, she was his only friend beside Isabel and Farlan; or at least his closest one, and she had been by his side for a long time. But that did not make her less annoying to him, what with their completely different personalities.

    Half an hour later, the man rubbed his temples and sighed, tired from working and thinking so much. He stared at the ceiling for a few moments and then closed his eyes, picturing himself crossing the skies as Silverwire. Remembering the sense of freedom he got from zooming through the air with his equipment, at high speed, relaxed him. Immediately after, he picked up the phone and dialed.

* * *

    That day Eren was especially sweet with Erwin. He had left a chocolate on his desk and smiled widely every time he ran into the man in the halls of the precinct. As the end of the day neared, Erwin invited Eren to join him at his apartment for dinner and to have sex, obviously, as per usual. The younger man did not doubt for a second and gladly accepted.

  To the older man, it was clear that he cared a lot about Eren, he was happy by his side and he helped Erwin endure the stress that his position caused. But if there was something he was entirely sure of, it was that he did not love Eren, and he would not be able to have a serious relationship with him.

   Nevertheless, he still could not walk away from him. He simply felt that ceasing to see him would cause more harm. After all, Eren was an adult and both of them had agreed that their relationship would only be sexual, from the beginning, though in time it had evolved into a friendship; so Eren needed to understand that it could not be anything more.

   Upon exiting the station, Erwin could not help but feel slightly bad at seeing the radiant face of his companion who, sitting next to him in the car, hummed a song cheerfully. Erwin felt like a traitor, like he was tricking Eren and in that moment, cursed being such a well-mannered person. _“Sometimes I hate the way you raised me, father.”_ He thought.

   Then his phone began to ring and, after checking the caller, he hesitated whether to answer, but did so at last. Meanwhile, Eren had stopped humming and had become very aware of his boss's movements.

“Hello?”

“Erwin”

“Levi, what a nice surprise!” Eren could not help tensing up when he heard the name. His hands tightened to fists on his lap and, seeing how Erwin’s gaze quickly darted from the road to him, Eren turned to stare at the window and tuned out the conversation.

“Are you free tonight?”

  “I’m really sorry, I have guests in my apartment today, so I can’t go out with you.” Eren cheered internally, as he had feared, for a moment, that Erwin would leave him stranded in the middle of the road to go meet with the rich guy. Immediately after, he berated himself because he knew the chief to be a gentleman above everything and thus incapable of ever playing a dirty trick of that caliber on him.

  “I understand. I’ll call you another day, then.”

  “Of course! Whenever you like...” Erwin tried to discern any edge of disappointment in Levi’s tone of voice, but he sounded as cold as he always did, so he could not tell whether turning down his invite had affected him in any way. Dealing with the businessman was completely different from dealing with Eren; Levi was much more mature, too mature, even, for his age. “Levi, I’m sorry…” He could not help apologizing.

  “Don’t worry, Erwin.” Again, the coldness in his voice was completely unreadable. After saying those words, he hung up. The younger man next to him, who had heard the short conversation, could not decide whether to feel happy that Erwin preferred him over Ackerman in that occasion, or to feel bad, noticing that it had been difficult for Erwin to turn him down, to the point of making him sigh and stare at the road without saying a word to him for the rest of the way.

   Eren was dying to ask Erwin directly what it was that he felt for Levi, if it was at all different to what he felt for him. Once he reached that thought, he asked himself if Erwin even had feelings for him, or if it was simply about the agreement they had come to in the beginning.

  He then decided to not say anything nor dig into his boss’s private life; after all, he did not owe him any explanation. Besides, Eren was convinced that what he felt for the older man was not love, but a great fondness born of his gentleness and friendship. That night, as always, he took care to enjoy the delicious food and the carnal pleasures the blond provided him with.

* * *

    Levi had to admit that he was not expecting Erwin to decline his invitation. It had never happened before, as the man was generally agreeable to joining him. He felt somewhat disappointed as he lacked a plan B and thus had nothing else to do that night; therefore he decided to return home and read a book, paired with a glass of good wine.

  It just so happened to be his chauffeur’s day off and Levi was driving one of his various cars, this time an extravagant, brand new Porsche. Once inside, he lit a cigarette and took off at full speed. A few minutes later and he was already close to his home, however, something really strange happened.

   First, a car more modest than his own got in front of him, cutting him off, since its speed was considerably reduced. The moment Levi tried to pass it, another car blocked him in the next lane and, as if it were not enough, a third vehicle moved behind him. He was completely trapped between the three cars, whose polarized windows kept him from seeing their occupants.

  They slowed to a stop and Levi had no choice but to do the same, as they had blocked his way and he had nowhere to run.

   He waited patiently for any action from those vehicles’ occupants. For two minutes that seemed eternal to him, there was no movement. They were probably talking amongst themselves and deciding what to do with him. Levi was not worried about the little cash he carried being stolen, or even his car being taken. It was nothing to him and, if he wanted to, he could recover them easily. So he waited to see what would happen.

   Finally, three armed, hooded men exited the cars; they knocked on the driver’s side window, which Levi understood perfectly and lowered it in order to listen to their plans.

“Good evening, mister Ackerman.”

“Good evening.”

“Oh, I like that answer. I see you’re willing to cooperate, so this’ll be pretty easy for us, right?”

“If what you want is money, I warn you that being a millionaire doesn’t mean I carry wads of it around.”

“And that we understand perfectly, my dear Ackerman.” Levi could make out the man’s wide smile, despite his entire face being covered by a ski mask. “We’re not that stupid, and we’re here for the big fish.”

“If you want to take my car, you can.”

“I don’t think you’re quite getting this. Let me explain…” The other two men opened the car door, seized Levi and dragged him out, though the businessman put up no resistance. They threw him down onto the pavement and one of them tied his hands behind his back with rope, followed by a tight pair of cuffs.

“Ackerman, my friend, this is a kidnapping.” Levi was not afraid; however, he had not been expecting that. Him, one of Sina’s most dangerous people, if not the single most dangerous person, and one of the most powerful multi-millionaires never thought someone would have the guts to attempt kidnapping him. It was clear that the men did not know who they were messing with.

    Next, they gagged him, patted him down to check for guns and put him inside a canvas sack. They threw him in what he figured was the trunk of one of the cars and he felt it begin to move. Judging by the time he was locked in there, and the vehicle’s movements, Levi guessed he had been taken to the city’s slums. He had gotten himself in big trouble and did not know how to get out of it, but even then, he remained calm and decided to analyze the situation further. If what they wanted was money, they were not planning to kill him.

    The man felt himself being transported moments after the vehicle stopped. He was deposited onto an uncomfortable wooden chair and released from his canvas prison, the rest of his bonds still in place.

   Levi looked around the place. It was a very dark and damp room, he bet it was the basement of a house. There were dusty boxes, old furniture and an endless amount of clutter. Right in the center, beneath the weak light coming from the bulb was Levi, surrounded by six men whose faces were hidden behind ski masks.

“Mister Ackerman…” the apparent leader of the gang spoke again “I hope the ride was to your liking. You’re surely wondering what we’re planning to do with you, though it’s beyond obvious that we’ve taken you for ransom. However…” the man approached Levi while one of the other criminals grabbed something from a table closer to them and handed it to him. “we’re not your regular kidnappers…”

   Levi did not lose his patience, though he already imagined what it was all about. He had not just been taken by thieves whose goal was to take his money. He had had the misfortune of falling right into the hands of a group of deranged sadists. Gagged and bound, he knew he would not be able to defend himself. Though his strength was superior to an average man's, he had been immobilized with iron cuffs on his wrists and ankles, so even he would not be able to get free.

  The leader of the kidnappers showed him the baseball bat his associate handed him, walked around Levi and began hitting him in the stomach, leaving him breathless. He knew that if he wanted to claim the reward, he could not kill Levi, but nothing prevented him from beating Levi at will. One by one, the rest of the gang took turns to hit the businessman, either with the bat or with their own fists. The moment when they decided to hit him in the face arrived and they removed his gag in order to watch him spit blood and hear him scream in pain.

    Because Levi was extremely proud, he would not give them the pleasure of hearing his screams, instead uttering curses left and right, insulting his captors and fueling their rage, which only caused them to strike harder. Levi knew that he would not get out of there in that good of a shape, but he had to come up with something to end that predicament. He would definitely not let them kill him and get away with it.

   When the men finally tired of beating him, seeing how he refused to make any pained noises and, quite opposite, looked as if nothing hurt him, they left him alone in the dark, but not without first announcing their swift return for another round, as they did not plan on cashing the rescue yet and wanted to ‘have a little more fun with him’.

   However, the kidnappers made the grave mistake of not gagging Levi again, and there was his chance. Unfortunately, he would have to enlist the help of the people he wanted to depend on the least. With his mouth, he managed to reach the collar of his shirt, where there was a communication device created by Hanji. Said gadget was used to communicate with her when he worked as Silverwire, but he never thought he would use it in such a situation.

“Hanji, do you hear me?” Levi said in a very low tone. Talking was slightly difficult due to the swelling in his face and the blood flooding his mouth. “Hanji!”

“Levi? What’s going on? I thought you’d gone straight home, I didn’t know you were out patrolling.”

  For the first time in his entire life, Levi was glad to hear his friend’s voice. He knew that from that moment onward, everything would turn out okay. He had to trust in her as much as in what he was willing to do.

“I don’t have much time, four-eyes, so listen to me.” Not even in the direst of situations did he pass up the chance to insult his friend. “Some fucking lunatics kidnapped me, they’ve had me locked up and they’ve been beating me this entire time, I haven’t been able to escape.”

“Crap! I’ll warn the police immediately, I have your exact coordinates now.” aside from their comms functions, the device created by the woman had a built-in GPS, with which it was very easy to know Levi’s location at all time.

“Wait! If you call the police, I’m not sure I’ll make it out of this okay. These guys are capable of killing me if they see that their plan failed.” He warned her.

“So, what are we gonna do?”

“Look around my secretary’s desk for Erwin Smith’s phone number, call him and explain the situation.”

“But, Levi, do you trust that man that much?”

“I have to, Hanji, he’ll know what to do.”

“Alright, hang on, Levi! Your prince charming will arrive on his white steed to rescue you soon.” Hanji did not lose her sense of humor even in the worst situations.

   He had no other choice but to trust his best friend and the smartest, most capable justice-seeker he had encountered. He knew that Erwin could rescue him without endangering his life; if anyone could do that, it was the blond. All he had left was to believe in that and hope that Hanji was fast enough to contact him. In the meantime, more torture awaited. He could already hear the sound of several footsteps approaching again.

* * *

   Hanji rushed to get Erwin Smith’s phone number and dialed quickly from Levi’s office. The phone rang several times until it sent her to voicemail. The woman would not give up that easily, so she kept calling, over and over. Luckily, the policeman’s phone was not off, he was simply refusing to answer; though that was no impediment to her stubborn character, so she kept at it.

    At his apartment, Erwin was in the middle of a heavy petting session with his subordinate. In the dark, he could see the light of his phone was turned on and hear its incessant vibrations on his bedside table. When it got unbearable, he decided to take it and turn it off, since whoever was calling would not leave him alone. So he told Eren he would do just that and that they would resume shortly. He extended his arm with the intention of pressing the off button, until he saw Levi Ackerman’s office number.

“Levi? But I already told him I’d be busy tonight…”  he found it extremely odd, so he chose to answer. Eren, on his part, felt bothered at hearing the millionaire’s name again. He wondered why the man was interrupting them if Erwin had already explained that he could not go out with him, and he could not avoid feeling some anger towards him.

“So you finally deign to pick up the phone, Erwin!” Hanji’s voice was heard on the other end, addressing him as if they were old friends.

“Who is this?” the blond, to whom the entire situation seemed stranger every second, asked.

“That doesn’t matter and besides, there’s no time. Listen, blondie, I work for Levi and his life is in danger as we speak, so I need your help immediately.”

“What’s all this about? Is this some kind of joke…?”

“Levi was kidnapped. He managed to get through to me and I have the exact location where he’s being held. He explicitly told me to only contact you, and not your whole department. Apparently, those men can kill him any second.”

“That can’t be!”

“Of course it can! A man of Levi’s social status is juicy prey to any kidnapper, but the thing is, he’s in grave danger. I’ll send you the information and you better hurry, there isn’t much time!” the desperation in the woman’s voice told Erwin that this was not a trick.

“Understood! Leave it to me.”

“Erwin, Levi trusts you. I don’t know why, but he does, please don’t mess it up.” The woman hung up after saying that and, seconds later, he received an address via text message. Erwin did not waste a second more and began to dress.

“Chief, what’s going on? Why are you getting dressed?” Eren asked, puzzled by his behavior. What he managed to get was that Erwin got a call that affected him and, immediately after, started to get dressed at an alarming speed.

“I’m sorry, Eren, it’s an emergency. I have to leave immediately. You can go home or stay over if you like, I have no problem with that.”

“But why? If it’s an emergency at the department, let me get ready and I’ll help you.”

“No!” the blond shouted, which shocked the younger man, who opened his eyes wide in surprise. Registering his reaction, Erwin regained his composure and cleared his throat before continuing. “I’m sorry, but it’s something I have to do alone. We’ll see each other afterwards, Eren.” The older man took several weapons and hid them in his pockets before dashing out of the place at full speed. Eren even got to hear him race off in his car, like a bat out of hell.

  The young officer remained in that room, clueless as to what was happening. Only one thing was clear to him: Levi Ackerman was important enough to his boss, for the man to lose his cool in such a way.

* * *

    Erwin tore off to the place he was told, very few times in his life had he driven so fast or felt so uneasy. In his mind, he was devising action plans that he could carry out upon arrival. It was, however, extremely difficult, because the woman had not given him many details about the situation. Furthermore, his mind was continuously flooded by those words: _‘Levi trusts you…’_

   The blond parked a couple of blocks away, so as not to run the risk of alerting the kidnappers. He walked as fast as his legs allowed and finally arrived. It was an old house that, from the outside, looked completely normal, save for being located in a residential area in one of the most dangerous parts of town. He examined the surroundings, stealthily entered the garden, making sure that no one could see him, and began to circle the building, looking for signs of its inhabitants.

    Nothing could be heard. The house remained in silence and the lights were turned off, which made it easier for him to hide but much harder to identify Levi’s position. He was beginning to wonder if it had all been a prank or if the woman had made a mistake when she gave him the address, when a faint light coming out of a small, ground-level window, caught his attention.

   Quietly, Erwin moved closer to the window and looked through it, trying to make out any shape inside the house. To all appearances, the window opened to the basement. It was very dark but the light was coming from an intermittent, lightbulb right above Levi’s head. He could not believe his eyes: Levi was tied and badly hurt. Even with the dim light it was easy to notice. He nearly jumped at seeing a man walk closer to Levi from the shadows, to deliver a strong punch to his already-bruised face.

  He had to act fast if he wanted to save Levi. There was no time to waste. But in the face of such a difficult situation, he wondered, could he do it on his own?

 

To be continued...

 


	9. Revelation part II

  Erwin’s brain plotted at full speed, trying to find the best strategy to proceed with under such complicated circumstances. How to enter that basement? How to face the kidnappers without getting Levi or himself hurt? How to get out of that situation?

_“Levi trusts you.”_

   He could not afford to fail, he simply could not. The pressure he felt at the moment was one he had never experienced before. He knew that it was because he was involving personal matters with work ones, though, technically, he was not working. However, it was related to Levi, his friend, with whom he had shared wonderful sex and spent long hours having invigorating conversations.

   Levi was his very dear friend who trusted him to the point of putting his life on his hands. When had he become Levi’s right-hand man? He didn’t know, and it was not important in that instant; the only thing he yearned to find was an answer to see the light in such a difficult situation.

   As the seconds passed, he could see how the men cruelly hit Levi; he counted six of them in total. At least he knew how many they were and had managed to map their positions around the place, besides having analyzed the surroundings. Now his only remaining doubt was how to get in there. He could force the door and enter the house, but he discarded that idea, as it was not convenient for him to do so in case there were more occupants inside.

   Erwin tried to open the small window, thinking that, by a stroke of luck, it would be open, and he could make a stealthy entry directly into the basement. But that that kind of fortunate coincidences only happened in the movies; the window was locked shut and the harsh reality was that his options and time were running out.

   He took a deep breath and closed his eyes to assess the situation once more. Finally, the man headed towards the front of the house, took a couple of stones from the front garden and threw them right at the windows of the home. Immediately, he got down on the ground and advanced quickly towards the back of the house, back to the window that led to the basement.

   As was to be expected, the kidnappers reacted to the noise caused by the glass shattering. Four of them went upstairs to see what had happened, leaving the other two to watch over the badly wounded millionaire. Erwin had no time to waste, with a single kick, he broke the small window and dove into the basement, getting cuts from the broken glass, which he did not care about then.

   He had to act swiftly. Walking gun in hand, even in such darkness, he managed to shoot straight at the leg of one of the men, who fell to the ground, contorting in pain. The surprise factor was vital, if he had not burst in thusly, the kidnappers would have had time to react.

   He pointed his weapon toward the second thug, who did not move due to the threat. Erwin got behind him fast and hit the nape of his neck so hard that he rendered him unconscious. The policeman then set onto freeing Levi, who was aghast, since he did not expect Erwin to emerge from the window.

   The sound of the blond’s weapon had already alerted the other criminals, who returned to the basement posthaste. Erwin did not have enough time to set Levi loose and, anyway, he would not have been able to do so because of the handcuffs.  Fortunately for him, the kidnappers were not seeking to kill Levi, so when they shot at Erwin, only one of the bullets flew past at point-blank range, as they could not risk accidentally killing the millionaire because of a miscalculation.

“Erwin!” Levi shouted, alarmed, he feared that they could murder him.

   Then, Erwin skillfully shot at the lightbulb, leaving the place in complete darkness, which gave him the chance to hide his position for a few moments, knowing that the men would not dare shooting blind so as not to hit Levi. Using that to his advantage, the officer, who knew their exact positions, took one of them by surprise and pointed at the man’s head with his gun.

   “Game’s over, boys. I have my gun trained to blow the top of your friend’s skull off at the slightest false move.” Though he was not given to using threats of that kind, or “dirty” techniques, it was a special situation in which he did not have the support of his officers and thus had to seize upon his own skills.

   “Now I want everyone to go up to the house, where I can see you, leave the guns right here. And I don’t want any tricks, I know exactly how many there are of you and, at the smallest attempt to do something, you can say goodbye to this man.” He threatened again.

   In the dark, Levi listened to everything, quite astonished at how skilled the chief of police had turned out to be. He well knew that the man was strong, agile and that his mind processed information at unimaginable speed, but he had never had the chance to see him in action by himself. Every time he had faced him as Silverwire, he was flanked by his police entourage and it was not common for him to act on his own, as team work was essential in his profession; and, as he remembered, the time he had acted alone, Levi had had to save him from dying in an explosion.

   Obediently, the kidnappers climbed up the stairs of the basement towards the well-lit house, three of them in total. The injured one continued to groan in the dark, and the other one remained unconscious. Erwin followed them, making sure that they were not carrying weapons and dragging his hostage without removing the gun from his head.

   “Now I want you to give this guy the keys to the handcuffs. We’ll go down to release Levi and get out of here. If you follow my orders, no one will die today.”

   As instructed, the leader handed over the keys, Erwin went down once more and the man he held at gunpoint proceeded to open both cuffs.

“Levi, do you think you can walk?”

“The fuckers beat me to exhaustion but as long as I’m leaving this hell, I’ll drag myself out if I have to.”

   Ackerman rose from the chair with difficulty. Having been immobilized and sitting for so long; besides, the amount of blows he had received, made walking extremely hard, but his desire to abandon the place was stronger. Erwin, on his part, was impressed with how unbelievably resilient the man had been, when his shorter stature and leaner complexion indicated the opposite. A regular person would not even be conscious after an assault like the one Levi had withstood.

   Erwin forced his hostage to take the handcuffs and put them on the remaining men and pocketed the key, so it would not be easy for them to escape and they could not follow them.

“Levi, we’re going.”

“Kill them, Erwin, you can’t leave them like that.”

   “Levi, you know very well who I am and what I think about that, we can’t take justice into our own hands. We already know where these men live, tomorrow morning you’ll sue, and the court will handle them. Legally.” He emphasized the last phrase.

   “What the fuck? Erwin! You’re gonna leave these bastards free so they can carry on doing what they want?” Levi could not believe that, confronted with a situation like that, Erwin continued to stick to his stupid justice ideals.

   “I’ve said what I had to say, let’s go now.” The blond punched the last of the kidnappers just like the previous one, leaving him knocked out as well. “I’m sorry, Levi.” Following that, he took him in his arms and carried him, exiting the house at an incredible speed. With each step Erwin took, he felt how his soul returned to his body and he began to relax, though that tension would not be easy to release.

   Levi did not expect to leave there being carried like a princess from a fairytale. In that moment, the joke Hanji had told him came back to him and he internally cursed her; she was right even in the worst scenarios. He stayed silent, he knew there was no way to make Erwin change his mind and, anyway, the only thing he desired at that time was to leave and be able to heal from his wounds in peace.

   When they arrived at the vehicle, Erwin placed him on the passenger’s seat gently and put on his seatbelt, trying not to hurt him more. Going by Ackerman’s extreme frown, he could guess that he was truly angry about the decision he had made; however, he could do nothing about it, he would have never been able to kill those men.

  On the other hand, he felt bad, as he was certain that while the suit was being filed, the men would have ample time to abandon the home and thus never pay for their actions. But it came down to betraying Levi or betraying himself and his morals; and it was very clear to whom he owed the most loyalty. That, however, did not stop him from feeling miserable at knowing that the scoundrels who had hurt Levi would get out scot-free and probably carry on with their misconduct on the streets.

* * *

 

  Erwin drove his car at top speed; he needed to get away as quickly as possible and take Levi to the hospital to have his wounds treated. He prayed that it was nothing serious and feared that he might have broken any ribs or acquired a grave lesion.

“Take me home, Erwin, don’t you dare leave me at a hospital.” Levi warned.

“Don’t think I’m going to leave you in that state Levi; luckily, I got there on time, a little longer and they would’ve killed you. But let me tell you that I’m also really impressed by your endurance.”

“I work out a lot. And regarding my wounds, I’ll call Grisha, my personal doctor. He’ll take good care of me and none of it will get out. Besides, don’t forget that the best medical equipment is made in my company, with cutting edge technology; I won’t let some mediocre doctor from any dirty hospital touch me.” He spoke with contempt.

“Alright, but I won’t leave until you’ve assured me that the doctor is in your house.” The blond smiled warmly at him, to which Levi diverted his gaze, feeling a slight warmth on his cheeks and much more frequent beats in his chest. He was trying to convince himself that that reaction was due to the beatings and the wounds he had gotten.

“By the way, Erwin…”

“Tell me.”

“Thank you for rescuing me, I owe you big time...” It was extremely difficult for Ackerman to appear so weak and vulnerable in front of Erwin or any other person, for that matter, but he was truly grateful. The feeling of joy that seized him upon seeing the policeman make away with the kidnappers was one that he had not experienced in a long time, nor in many occasions during his lifetime.

“It’s me who has to be thankful, Levi.”

“What? That makes no sense. Are you sure those guys didn’t hit you in the head?”

“I thank you for having trusted in me.” That said he gifted him with another of those radiant smiles with which he could melt even the coldest of hearts. Levi did not know how to react, he was not expecting such a reply and Erwin’s smile only made him more nervous. His heart rate accelerated noticeably and the blush on his cheeks became more pronounced. He frowned deeply and stared out the window to avoid the moment’s awkwardness.

   He would have liked to answer with something sarcastic, but the words simply failed to leave his mouth.

* * *

 

   Hanji was at Ackerman’s mansion, very worried, waiting for news about her friend. The woman paced up and down the salon, cursing at the air because she felt impotent at not being able to do anything more for Levi. She had to trust his judgement, but she did not know what she could do if the policeman failed his mission and something really grave befell him.

 “Miss Hanji, mister Ackerman and mister Smith have just arrived.” One of the housemaids informed her. Upon hearing that, the woman ran to their encounter.

“Levi!” She shouted, throwing herself at the man, “Are you okay? What am I saying? You look awful! Those guys fucked you up.” She quickly fired words at him while her hands moved all over the man’s body and examined him from head to toe, looking for injuries.

“I’m fine, four-eyes, do me the favor of being useful and call my doctor.” He requested, while pushing her away so she would stop touching him.

“By the way! It’s a pleasure to meet you in person, Erwin, I’m Hanji, the one who got in touch with you at Levi’s behest. Thank you so much for saving this midget!” This time she addressed the blond, stretching out his hand in greeting.

“The pleasure is all mine. And believe me, I’m relieved to have gotten out of this, I wasn’t too sure that we were going to make it.” He confessed as he squeezed the woman’s hand lightly.

“Hanji, the doctor!” Levi reminded her.

“Right, right, sorry.” The woman abandoned the room in search of the phone to make the call, leaving both men alone.

                Levi sat on a sofa and sighed, relieved. At last, the feeling of being home calmed him; being in the comfort and safety of his house, far away from those kidnappers who had the gall to trifle with him. He thought that if Erwin did not have enough reasoning to know that the only way to make them pay was to murder them, he would not stand idly by. He made a promise to himself to find them and make them take responsibility, to enjoy killing them slowly and watching them suffer. His face softened at the thought and, being so rapt, he did not notice when the officer sat by his side, contemplating him.

“I’m glad you’re calmer now.”

“I just wanted to get out of that place…” he confessed “…Erwin, I had never felt so weak in my life, it’s as if I weren’t myself. Again, thanks for your help, I know you put your life at risk by just showing up to that place.” Levi himself was surprised by revealing this side to the man, he was truly behaving like he was someone else. Very few times had he felt so impotent and defenseless in the face of a situation and the shock that that caused him was what led him to be more open and sensitive toward his savior.

“I told you not to mention it. I was extremely pleased to find out you trusted me so much. I’m not gonna lie to you, I felt a lot of fear, too, but I was never going to leave you there; I also wasn’t going to risk your life by calling all my officers.” The man leaned back on the sofa, directing his gaze to the ceiling pensively. “I really didn’t overthink it, I just knew I had to get there quickly and when it was all over, I realized that my actions had been pretty reckless.”

“I’ll do whatever you want to pay you back, just name it.” Levi hurried to say, losing his composure once more. Hearing the sincerity of Erwin’s version of events only made him feel more indebted to him.

“It’s not necessary, Levi, your showing me that our friendship is true is enough for me.” Erwin came closer to the shorter man and held one of Levi's hands in both of his. “In this city, not everyone has the privilege of earning the trust of the grumpy multimillionaire Levi Ackerman.” He winked and smiled animatedly at him after saying that. Erwin wanted to calm Levi, who seemed very different than usual.

“You’re a bastard, Erwin…” again, that blush and the accelerated heartbeat wreaked havoc on Levi’s sanity. Far from calming him, the gesture only managed to destroy what little was left of his nerves. But he was the elegant and flirty, the serious and sensual Levi Ackerman, who wore an invisible mask in front of all mankind, perfectly hiding his emotions; and he could not afford to keep showing Smith his vulnerable side. “…in any case, you just let me know and I’ll do what you ask any time.” he added, to then clear his throat, separating his hand from the blond’s.

“And I appreciate that.” Erwin did not stop smiling.

“Levi, the doctor’s on his way, he’ll be here in about ten minutes.” Hanji informed.

“Good! Since miss Hanji is with you, I’ve nothing else to do here, so I’ll take my leave. I’ll call you tomorrow to see how you’re feeling Levi.” Erwin got up from his seat to head out.

“Erwin, wait!” This, time, the woman rushed to take him by the arm and stop his departure. Levi looked at her with murder in the eyes, wondering what crazy thing she was thinking to tell Erwin then. “Don’t leave yet, at least let Grisha check the wounds you have, he’s an excellent physician and you’ll see you’ll leave good as new.” The woman smiled while forcing him to take his seat again.

“Wounds?” Both men spoke at once, looking at Erwin’s body. “But how? When?” one more time, both voices spoke in synchrony, as if they had practiced it.

   In fact, Erwin’s outfit was torn in several places and stained with his own blood. The policeman had gotten multiple cuts when breaking and entering through the basement window, said cuts had bled and some were rather deep, particularly on his legs. But with all the commotion and adrenaline, neither him nor Levi had noticed the wounds.

“You had to be men, to be so stupid!” Hanji sighed and walked to the sofa where the men were sitting, to force them to make space for her in the middle. Once she was sitting, she put an arm around both men’s shoulders and smiled happily. “The gossipers in the media are right, you’re made for each other, you should plan your wedding immediately.” She joked, amused.

   At her joke, Levi just pushed the woman’s arm away and went to sit by himself on another chair, crossing his arms and staring at nothing, not knowing that his tomato-red face gave him away completely. Erwin, on his part, smiled kindly and decided to obey Hanji and wait for the so-called doctor Grisha.

* * *

 

                Less than ten minutes later, (which felt like eternity to Levi, because of his discomfort and pain) the maid announced the arrival of the doctor, who walked into the room looking at its occupants and did not suppress his astonishment at seeing the state Levi was in, and Erwin’s bloodied clothes.

“Don’t tell me you got into a fight!” was his first comment.

“None of that, Grisha, but I thank you to treat this with the utmost discretion, we’ll tell you what happened right away.” Hanji told him, smiling and inviting him to take a seat on one of the free couches.

                While the woman gave the doctor a brief retelling of the events, Erwin took the opportunity to address Levi.

“Can that man be trusted? Are you sure he won’t tell anything to the media?”

“Don’t worry, Erwin, he has been my personal doctor for several years and I can assure you that he can be trusted. Besides, he’s a very good doctor.”

   After the woman had superficially told Grisha the facts, they proceeded to another room in the mansion, which was equipped with a hospital bed and a large number of medical devices, machines and instruments. There, Levi undressed until he was just in his underwear, then, Grisha set upon examining and dressing his wounds. He took a long while doing so, due to the state Levi had been left in after the beating the kidnappers had given him.

“Alright, mister Ackerman, I’ll leave you the prescriptions for the medicine you need to take and the ointments you need to use. You were very lucky, a bit more and you would’ve ended up with a fracture, however, I recommend that you abstain from any strenuous physical activity for a month at least.” With that warning, Levi and Hanji exchanged glances, they knew that an impediment like that would be very bad for Silverwire, who would not be able to appear within less than a month.

“Now it’s the officer’s turn.” Grisha announced with a smile.

“Do you know me from somewhere doctor? I believe we have not been formally introduced yet.”

“Who in this city doesn’t know the great Erwin Smith, chief of police?” Grisha approached Erwin and extended his hand before introducing himself. “Also, you’re my son’s boss who, I’d like to say, admires you a lot and always talks to me about you. My name is Grisha Jaeger and it’s a pleasure to meet you in person.” He smiled a sincere, joyful smile at a very struck Erwin.

  The blond took a moment to snap out of it and take the doctor’s hand. He was not expecting that, and he found it somewhat uncomfortable to meet the father of his fuck buddy, especially knowing that the poor man had no idea as to what was going on between the two of them.

“The pleasure is all mine, Grisha.” Erwin gathered his wits and shook Eren’s father’s hand lightly, returning his smile.  “I’ll take this chance to tell you that Eren is one of our most valuable officers. He’s extremely brave, despite his age, and has been very helpful to us. I see a lot of potential in him and I’m sure a brilliant future awaits him.”

  It was Grisha who was struck this time, since he had always been against his son becoming a “simple policeman”, instead of dedicating himself to medicine like him; but he felt truly relieved to hear Erwin’s words. After all, if the entire city admired that chief, he had to be someone worthy of respect and who had to be taken very seriously.

   Grisha checked Erwin’s wounds; he had to suture a deep gash on his leg and gave him some antibiotics to avoid infections. When he finished, both the doctor and the policeman said their goodbyes to Levi and Hanji and set off to their respective homes.

“I think you made a good choice, Levi…” Hanji mused, looking serious, which was rare for her.

“I was lucky, but I think I was right to leave this situation in Erwin’s hands.” The businessman admitted.

“I don’t mean that, silly!” Now it was Hanji who exited through the front door, abandoning Levi’s home for her own.

“What are you talking about, then?” Levi, who did not understand the woman, questioned.

“I mean that you made a good choice regarding your first love.” Upon saying that, the woman winked and blew a kiss at him before exiting quickly and slammed the door behind herself, leaving Levi aghast, with no chance to protest.

“That damn woman!” The man went to his large bed and got beneath its soft covers, though he could not fall asleep immediately as he was exhausted and in pain from all that had happened to him that night. His mind continued racing, going over the day’s events though not all that had happened with the kidnappers, rather all his friend Hanji’s words and his reactions to Erwin.

   The warmth on his cheeks from just seeing his simultaneously manly and kind smile, the loud beat of his heart, the trust that had surged through him for that man. What was that desperation that he made him feel? Why did he feel like everything would turn out right by his side? Why was he so eager to see him if it had barely been an hour since his departure?

“I had never allowed anyone to enter my life like that before…” he muttered to himself, gazing at the ceiling thoughtfully “…it can’t be possible for Hanji to be right. I promised myself that I’d never allow that to happen to me and, at my age, I was so sure that it would never happen.” He did not even know the reason why he was saying all of that to himself aloud. It was as if he needed to hear himself in order to convince himself, but it was all useless. He tried to evoke Erwin’s memory over and over and it was the same every time, a sigh he drowned so it would not finish coming out, the burning in his cheeks and the quivering of his body.

                The man moved his fist over the place in his chest where the heart is and, closing his eyes firmly, as if with that it would be possible to erase the revelation he had just had, he finished letting out the sigh he as holding back before admitting it to himself.

“Levi, you’re fucked…”

                In the darkness of his enormous bedroom, the business magnate, fearless superhero, elegant, charismatic and sarcastic Ackerman admitted that the entire game of getting closer to Erwin through his flirting and good sex, with the intent of using him, had gone very, very wrong. Right there, on that fateful night, something that he would have never expected revealed itself to him. He had fallen victim to that blond’s charm, sensuality, bravery and kindness. Summing it up in a single phrase: he had fallen in love with Erwin.

“For the first time ever…”

*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.*

  The next morning, Grisha was having breakfast with his children and his wife. Carla, who had not had the opportunity to ask, but had remained curious, questioned him in regards to why he left the house in the wee hours of the morning.

“Well, it’s a delicate matter that I must treat with total discretion, Carla.”

“You can’t even tell your own family?” She asked, now angry at her husband’s refusal.

“I can only tell you that I was taking care of a small matter at mister Ackerman’s house, come on, woman! You know that I’m his personal doctor and I’m sincerely flattered that he chose me as such, it means I’m an excellent physician.”

   Eren became interested in the conversation on hearing Levi’s name. Most of the time, he skillfully ignored any talk having to do with medicine coming from his father, since he always ended up hinting that he should have studied to become a doctor.

“You’re his personal doctor? Since when, dad?”

“Since long ago, Eren, you just hadn’t noticed because you’re a master at ignoring me when I talk.”

“That’s not true!”

“Of course it is!” Carla refuted. “You know very well that you’ve never had the decency of listening to your father when he talks about his profession. Though it’s all your fault, Grisha, you’re the one who’s constantly pestering Eren about his career choice.” She reprimanded her son as well as her husband.

“Anyway…” the father cleared his throat before continuing “…you’ll be happy to know that mister Smith, Eren’s boss, was there too.”

“What?!” If he had been chewing something at that moment, the young man would have certainly spit it all out from the surprise caused by what his ears had heard. “And what was my boss doing there?”

“It’s none of your business, Eren, it’s a private matter of misters Ackerman and Smith.”

   It was a low blow to listen to his father’s statements. They made it seem as if the two men were in a relationship, as if they had a very intimate life together. That was the tone his father used, and his father knew a lot more about Ackerman’s private life, that meant that he had to be partly right.

“Anyway, as I was saying, mister Smith is a great man, I now understand why Eren admires him so much.” He confessed.

“Of course, you have no idea how much he admires him…” This time, Mikasa, who had remained silent the entire time, commented in a sarcastic tone. Their parents turned to her without understanding her sarcasm and Eren kicked her shin hard under the table, so the young woman would not say something that would get him in trouble. Of course, that was not Mikasa’s intention, she simply wanted to make her brother suffer a little, so he would realize certain things.

   They finished breakfast and Grisha headed straight for the hospital. Eren had a morning shift, so he headed to work as well. He was thankful that Mikasa was on the evening-night shift, that way he would not have to walk with her to the station and he would have some time to think.

   Knowing that Erwin had taken off running at Ackerman’s request and had left him in the middle of having sex was bothering him immensely. All because they got mixed up in god-knows-what mess that made them have to call his father. He felt jealousy growing within himself at the realization that that millionaire was more important to the blond than he. And since the beginning, he knew that he should not get sentimentally involved with his boss but, in that moment, he felt like it was eating him inside. That revelation made him accept the facts at last.

“Eren, you’re so stupid. You fell in love again…” If he had already accepted it, this had been the definitive confirmation and there was no longer any room for doubts.

 

 

To be continued…

 

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you liked it, this is only the beginning! If you can read spanish please look for the original version on my profile. Besides, if you have any comment feel free to let me know!
> 
> Cheers~~
> 
> Izu.


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